Found
by sassybutt32
Summary: Sequel to "Missing". Spinelli and the twins are moving in with the Detweilers. Vince's secret crush is reviled and someone finally gets together with someone they should have been with LONG before! R&R and enjoy!
1. Moving In

**Yay!! The sequel is up!!! This is the sequel to my first story "Missing". O know, i know, sucky title for the story. Missing, Found, wft??! lol, i know i know. I could have picked a better title, but I suck at thinking, so i just picked this. DONT FLAME ME 4 THAT!!!! XD lol anyway, this story will have a LOT more TJ/Spin action, i promise! They are my fav couple in the show, and this story will have some romance. Now, a quick thing before you start reading. I plan on making this story jump from month to month. Right now, they are in October. I plan on making this story end in March, at the art show. So, the next chapters, right after is says who's POV it's in, it will say the month and date. So, it'll be jumpinf over days, and weeks, okay? Cool. Also, their won't just be some TJ/Spin action, there will be some other action. Like, Mikey/Annie, SOME Gus/Chipy, and some Vince n his mistery girl and Gretchen and her mistery boy. If you guys can guess who the girl and guy are for those two, i'll give you a cookie!!!! ^-^ *shows you tray of awsome fresh cookies!* the best part is they are any type of cookie you want them to be! ^-^ lol anyway, happy reading and PLEASE REVIEW AND TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK!!!! **

**I OWN NOTHING!! I ONLY OWN PETE, EMILY, AND ANNIE!!!!! EVERYTHING ELSE IS OWNED BY PAUL AND JOE!!!!! **

**Found**

**Chapter One - Moving In**

_Spinelli's POV_

Being stuck in a hospital for five days is soo boring and it really sucks. First, I had to eat the crapy hospital food **(A/N: sorry, i've never had hospital food b4, but when ever i watch tv they say the food sucks and my sister said the food sucked when she had her baby)**, I couldn't sleep on my back because of my wound, the doctor gave me some medicine to rub in on my back to make it heal faster and I can't even do it by myself, I went to see my mom in the intensive care unit, and it was terrible. She was knocked out, breathing through a tube and had a big bruise on the corner of her head. It was weird.

It was Wednesday afternoon. I was wearing a pair of pajama pants and a tank top instead of a hospital gown. Gretchen was sitting in the chair next to my bed and I was packing up my bag with all the stuff people have sent to me to help me "Get Well Soon".

"So, are you going to try out for anything this year?" Gretchen asked me.

I chuckled, "Yeah right. With every thing that's happened to me, sports are the last thing on my mind, Gretch."

"Who said anything about sports? I'm taking about the school's art club. Maybe you should join. You're really good." Gretchen said. I shrugged, "I don't want to be apart of an art club. In art club don't they assign you projects to do or something? I don't like drawing something someone told me to draw. I like being free to draw anything." I made clear.

"You were always a free sprit, weren't you?" Gretchen asked with a smile.

I smiled and nodded my head. "So," Gretchen started after a few moments, "Because of all that's happened, are you not going to date anyone this year either?"

I zipped up my bag, "I don't know. I'll only date a guy I know, who understands what has happened to me and who knows how to handle me."

Gretchen rubbed her chin, "Hmm, you just kind of described TJ, you know that?"

I blushed, "N-No way! You're crazy, Gretch! Me and TJ? That's insane, crazy, and impossible and it's never going to happen!" I stuttered. Gretchen smiled, "That's all I needed to know, Spin."

I shot her a look, "Oh yeah! Well, what about you, miss know-it-all?! Are you planning on dating someone this year?"

She shrugged, "I don't know. I mean, I know a boy at school likes me, but I don't know if he'll ask me out. It might be bad on his image. I mean, you'd never think of us together, so if we do get together it might make him look bad or weird or something. I don't want to ruin his rep. So, I don't know."

I paused, "Wait? Someone at school likes you? Who?" I asked.

"I never thought you of all people would want to know gossip about who likes who. That's more Ashley territory." Gretchen pointed out.

I sat down on the bed, "Hey, don't you dare say I'm going into Ashley territory. It's just; a guy is interested in you, Gretch! That's a first Well, second, because of the Jeremy thing in fourth grade, but whatever. So, if a guy is in to you, I have to know. It's really big in our group!"

She shrugged, "I guess you're right. But, I can't tell you."

"Why the hell not?!" I shouted.

"Because it's a secret! He doesn't even know I know!" Gretchen shouted back. I pouted, "I can keep a secret"

"A secret about what?" I heard someone ask. I turned around and TJ and Vince walked into the room, TJ holding a bouquet of lilies.

"Oh, nothing." Gretchen said quickly. I turned from them to Gretchen then to TJ, "Wow, TJ, Whose are those from?" I asked, pointing to the flowers.

TJ looked hurt, "Who else in the world knows your favorite flower?" he asked.

I shrugged, "Mikey, Vince, Gretch, Gus, my mom, my dad, Joey, Vito, Pete, Emily,-"

"Me! Me don't forget about me" TJ butted in. I laughed, "I'm kidding TJ. Thank you so much for the flowers. They are really pretty." I walked up to them and took the flowers out of his hands.

"I tried talking him out of it. I mean, he's gotten you flowers every day you've been in here. He's just wasting his hard earned money on flowers that are gonna die in a few weeks." I heard someone say. I looked behind TJ and saw Gus, Chipy, Mikey and Annie walk in.

I smiled and walked up to them. "Hey guys. How was school?" I ask.

"Boring." They said in unison. "It was fun for me." Gretchen said. We all turned to look at Gretchen, "We had the easiest of tests in science, math and history. Then we had a lecture in heath. It was a very interesting day." she said.

"Duh! You're you, Gretch. You think school is fun." I announced.

She smiled, "Thank you."

We all laughed. "So, Spin, you ready to leave this place?" Gus asked. I nodded, "YES! It's so boring here! And the food sucks! I've been dying for something decent all week! Please, when are your parents coming to sign me out, Teej?!" I asked him. He chuckled, "They're downstairs right now filling out the papers."

"Good. The sooner I'm out of here the better!" I said, sitting down on the bed.

"But, Spinelli, the sooner you're out of here, the sooner you have to get back to school." Chipy pointed out.

I sighed, "Man, you're right, Chipy."

Annie took the flowers out of my hands and brought them into the bathroom to add some water.

"So, I brought something for you, Spin. I think you'll like it." TJ said, reaching into his backpack.

"No way, Teej! You getting me flowers all week are enough. I don't want anything else!" Announced, slightly laughing.

He smiled, "This is way better then flowers, Spin. Trust me."

He pulled out a piece of paper and handed it to me. I looked at it. It was a flyer for an art show! It was from ages 13 to 18, you could submit up to five pieces of art, they had to be your work, no tracing, any type of art style may be used, and all art pieces must be submitted by March 21, 2009. **(A/N: remember, it's the middle of October right now)**

I looked around the room. Everyone was smiling at me. I smiled back and continued to read the rest of the flyer, but this time out loud, "Their will be three prizes. The third prize will be a hundred dollars cash money and a picture of your art on the town's website. Second prize will be five hundred dollars cash money and their art on display at town hall. First prize will be ten hundred dollars cash money and their art in an art gallery in New York City!" I felt faint from just reading that part!

I jumped up from the bed and hugged TJ, "Oh my God! Thank you so much Teej for showing me this! You rock!" He hugged me back, "Hey, I thought you'd like so, I grabbed if off the teachers desk."

"Wow, Teej," I laughed, walking back over to the bed.

We heard the door open and Mrs. And Mr. Detweiler walked in, Pete and Emily following behind, "Okay. You ready to go Spinelli?" Mrs. Detweiler asked. I smiled and nodded my head, "Ready as ever!"

I handed my bag to TJ and a nurse walked in with a wheelchair.

"What's with the chair?" I asked, standing up. "It's a hospital rule that you leave the hospital in a wheelchair, Miss Spinelli." She said. I sighed and took a seat.

The nurse wheeled me out of the room, while everyone else followed behind or next to me. Once we got to the elevator I heard a whisper and I looked behind me. The nurse had stepped aside and TJ was wheeling the wheelchair.

"Are you tying to put the nice nurse lady out of a job?" asked, smirking. He smiled, "Hey, pushing a wheelchair has always been kind of a dream to me. Now, I can finally achieve it!"

"Right. Let's just pretend I believe that, shall we?" I joked.

We all stepped off the elevator and walked out of the hospital. "I'll go get the car and pull it around." Mr. Detweiler said, walking out to the parking lot.

We waited about five minutes and Mr. Detweiler pulled the car up to us. I stood up from the wheelchair and took a seat next to the window. Pete and Emily got in next, and TJ took the seat next to the other window. "What about the guys?" I asked. "Vince's dad brought them here. He's in the car behind us." TJ said, pointing behind him. I looked over my shoulder and saw a mini van.

"I had no idea Vince's dad drove a mini van." I chuckled, pulling on my seatbelt. "He only drives it when he has to lug around a bunch of people. He mostly drives it when he has to take the current team Vince is on to the games and stuff." TJ made clear.

"I want ice cream" Emily announced. I smiled, "Ice cream does sound good. " I stated. "Why don't we stop at Kelso's for some ice cream?" Mrs. Detweiler said. "Yeah!" The twins said in unison. "Sure." I said, and TJ nodded his head.

Mr. Detweiler, instead of turning into the street they lived on, turned into another street the lead to Kelso's.

_A half hour later. . ._

I stepped into the house, while Pete and Emily ran in and up to their toys that were on the floor in the living room. "You guys you have to pick up after yourselves here! Remember, we're guests here" I scolded them.

Mrs. Detweiler laughed as she walked up to us, "No, no, I don't mind Spinelli. It's fine. I want you guys to feel at home. Just be yourselves here."

I bit my lip and nodded. "Okay. I'm gonna head up to Becky's room and get settled. Can you call me when dinner's ready?" I asked. Mrs. Detweiler smiled and nodded her head. I walked up the stairs and down the hall. I walked into Becky's room. The walls were still pink, sadly. But, on the empty shelves where pictures of my family, friends and even some of my drawings. On Becky's desk were my color pencils, my handheld and electric sharpener, a desk light and my sketch book. I walked over and opened the drawers and saw my paints, brushes, and my other sketch books I finished up in the past few years.

I walked over to the dresser and opened the drawers. All my clothes were folded neatly in the drawers. I looked at Becky's bed and my black comforter with skulls with pink bows on were where Becky's once pink comforter was. The pillow cases were also my black pillow cases with skulls with pink bows on. I smiled and walked over to the window. I opened it and looked out at the houses. TJ's room was the room that had the view of the street. Becky's room had the view of all the houses from the side.

"Yeah, a bad view, isn't it?" I heard a familiar voice ask. I smiled and turned around. TJ was leaning on the doorway. "You should know. You have the best view in the whole house. You should know all the other views are crapy." I made clear.

"I guess you're right. Hey, since everything is already unpacked and stuff, how about you come over to my room and we play some _Guitar Hero_?" he asked. I smiled, "Of course!" I smiled, walking out of the room and up the hall to TJ's room. He followed.

Soon, we started to play Guitar Hero until dinner was ready. It felt like a normal home. Like the home I had when Dad was still here, and when Joey and Vito where still here. It was like a dream I never wanted to wake up from.

_To be continued. . . _

**Yay!! All done!!! I plan on posting the next chapter sometime this weekend or during the week next week. Anyway, please R&R and no flames, thank you very much. Ok, well, ttyl.**

**~~~Taylor**


	2. Absent

**Yay!! Chapter two! I fell so great about myself now! XD lol. yeah, i made this chapter all in TJ's POV, for some unknown reason. Next chapter might be a little short. idk. anyway, in this chapter u find out who Vince has the hots for! XD yay! i've been wondering that myself. . . anyway, thank u to all the awsome ppl who reviewed for the first chapter! U guys rock! and u know who u are! XD lol, but also thank u who didnt review, but read the story. Also, sorry this chapter is so long. All my past chapters were around 5 pages, this on is 6 almost 7! I'm so sorry for the more reading! Anyway, please R&R and Enjoy! ^-^**

**I DO NOT OWN RECESS!!!!! I ONLY OWN PETE, EMILY AND ANNIE!!! PAUL AND JOE ARE THE AWSOME PPL WHO MADE THIS GREAT SHOW AND I'D LIKE TO THANK THEN FOR DOING THAT!! U GUYS ROCK!!! AND SO DOES EVERYONE WHO READS MY STORY!!!! HERE, HAVE A COOKIE CUZ U ROCK!!! *HANDS EVERYONE AWSOME COOKIES* AREN'T THEY GOOD? ANYWAY, I OWN NOTHING BUT THE OC PPL!!!**

Chapter Two - Absent

_TJ POV_

_November 3. . . _

It finally the end of the day! School was much too long today. It was last period, end of the day, and Vince was in my class. We had gym together.

Our gym teacher was this old guy who couldn't hear and sat at his desk reading old people magazines. But, he isn't the coach of any team in the school, and yet he's the gym teacher. All the real coaches are history, or science, or math teachers. I will never understand how that happened.

Vince threw me over a basketball and we started to dribble it all the way to a free basketball hoop.

"So, what's it like living with Spin? Is it weird or anything?" Vince asked me. I shrugged, "It's like nothing. She's the same as she is here, but is nice with my parents. She thinks since my parents are taking care of her and the twins that they have to be on their best behavior. I think she still doesn't understand that my parents just want her to be herself, even when she's around them."

Vince shot his ball into the basket, "That's it? She isn't different or anything when she's at home?" he asked.

I shook my head, "No. I mean, sometime she's weird, but I don't think it's a big deal."

"Weird like what?" Vince asked, picking up his ball.

"Like," I paused for a moment, "Like, sometime during the day, whether we're watching TV or even eating dinner, she just stops what she's doing ask to be excused then runs upstairs." I finished.

"Um, dude, maybe she had to use the bathroom." Vince pointed out.

I shook my head, "No, it's not the bathroom. She goes straight to her room and stays there for hours at a time. I think only Pete and Emily know what she's doing up there, because anytime she does they look at each other and smile. It's really weird."

Vince started to dribble the ball, "Hmm, that is weird. Why don't you ask her?"

I shrugged, "I don't know. I just have a feeling she wants to be alone when she does that and she wants it a secret. So, I don't ask her."

"I don't know what to tell you, man. Fourth grade Spinelli never did anything like that. Oh, yeah. Where is Spinelli today? Is she skipping or something?" Vince asked.

I shot my ball into the hoop, "Nope. Her, Pete, Emily and my mom went to trial today. It started at nine and my mom said she didn't have to go to school if the trial ended before school was out. 'Cause, you know, Spinelli has to testify against Evan and everything."

"Really?" Vince asked. A second later he started to chuckle.

"What's so funny about it?" I asked.

"It's just, I bet Spinelli went to court in ripped jeans and a punk t-shirt with sneakers. That's just a funny thing to think." he said, placing his ball under his arm.

I shook my head, "Nope. Wrong again, LaSalle. I saw her this morning. She is _far_ from ripped jeans and a punk t-shirt. Believe me."

"Why? What's she wearing?" He asked.

I walked over and picked my basketball. "She was in something I think my mom would wear, dude. She was in a black knee length skirt, white button down shirt, black long sleeve jacket, tights and black heels. Not high heels, but heels. She looked like she was going into a job interview then a court trial."

"What about her hair? Was it still crazy like always?" Vince asked.

"I really don't think her hair is crazy. But, she was wearing her hair down today. No coloring, no mini ponytails or pigtails, nothing. It was just down." I clarified.

Vince rubbed his chin, "Hmm. Very un-Spinelli-ish."

I nodded, "Yeah. But, I guess you gotta look like that when going to a trial." I picked up the basketball and started to walk around the gym.

"But, let's take the subject off Spinelli and put it on you, Vince. I've been thinking, and thinking and thinking all over! And I still can't figure out who you have the hots for. Can you please just tell me?" I asked Vince.

He grinned, "I can't. It's a secret."

"I can keep a secret! You can trust me!" I informed him.

"Okay! Okay! But, promise you won't laugh." Vince said, walking up the bleachers to the very top.

"I promise!" I smiled.

Vince took a seat in the corner and I took a seat on the bleacher one away from the top. Vince looked around the gym, then stared down at his lap, "I like," he paused. "Ghmmename." he mumbled.

"What was that man?" I asked.

"I said," Vince started then paused. "You know what. Forget it!" I said.

"No way! I think I hear part of her name. The first letter sounded like a "G". Let's see, what girl in the school who is like the opposite of you that's name starts with a G?"I asked myself.

"Wait! It's a girl, right?" I asked, is a whisper.

Vince shot me a death glare, "Of course it's a girl!"

I held up my hands, "Okay, okay. It's a girl. Now, let's see. Who is this mystery girl?" I thought for a moment. Who could this girl be?

Then, it dawned on me. I knew who the girl was!

"Dude, you like Gretchen!?" I almost shouted. Vince made a shh-ing noise and covered my mouth.

"Keep your voice down Teej!" he whispered. I pushed his hands away from my mouth, "Dude! You like Gretch! That's the biggest shock of my life! So, are you going to ask her out?" I asked.

"Hell no!" he said. "Why not?" I asked. "Because she's Gretchen, Teej! The minute I ask her, she'll (A) start laughing and say no, or (B) tell me the statistics of our relationship lasting, which might be slim to none, and say no! I am not putting myself out there for rejection! Not from my best friend! No way!" he argued.

"That's the most stupidest thing I've ever heard! Vince, I bet if I ask her, she'll tell me how she feels about you, then if she does like you, you can ask her out! It's perfect!" I bargained.

Vince bit his lip, "I don't know, Teej. Gretchen is smart. I bet she'll catch on."

"Nope. I'll keep is discrete. I'll bring it up in the middle of something. I'll lead the conversation into people liking people and then I'll ask how she feels about someone like you. It's perfect." I smiled.

Vince sighed, "You better be right, Teej."

Just then, the school bell rang and everyone started to leave the gym. Vince and I started to walk down the steps, "Teej, the whole gang is meeting at Kelso's after school. Mr. Kelso just got in a new shipment of comic books and we're going over to check it out. You in?" Vince asked.

I shook my head, "Nope. I'm gonna head home and see how everything went at the trial."

"Man, you are so in love with Spinelli, Teej." Vince laughed.

"Shut up, Vince! I do not love Spinelli! She's my friend! My best friend! And that's it!" I argued, my ears starting to heat up like fire.

Vince laughed, "Whatever man. See you later."

I picked up my backpack and headed for the door, "See you later man."

_At the Detweiler house. . ._

"I'm home!" I shouted as I walked in the door. I placed my backpack down next to the staircase and walked into the kitchen. "Hello sweetheart! How was school?" my mother asked, placing a plate of cookies on the table where Pete and Emily sat. They were coloring, still in their best clothes from the trial.

"It was the same as always. Where's Spin?" I asked. Emily and Pete started to make kissing noises and I shot them a look, "Shut up you two! It's not like that!" I said to them.

My mom smiled, "The minute we got home she ran up to her room, ran back downstairs with a black case in her hand and into the backyard. She's been out there for about an hour now."

I nodded and walked to the back door.

I felt a tug on my jeans and I turned around. Emily was standing behind me. "Yeah Em?" I asked. She waved her hand, motioning for me to bend down to her height. "When you go out there, um, make sure you're quiet 'cause Spinelli gets mad if you make noise when she's in the middle of doing something important." she said. I smiled and nodded, "Okay. Thanks Em."

Emily smiled and walked back to the table. I stood up and walked out to the backyard.

It was completely empty. I couldn't even hear anything. I walked around the backyard, but no sign of Spinelli.

I looked up at the big tree and started to climb. Spinelli had to be in the tree house. There was no other place in my backyard for her to be!

I pushed open the trap door and looked inside. Nothing.

"Spinelli?" I called. I pushed myself up and into the tree house. I walked around the tree house. Nothing. Where was she?

Just then, I heard a creaking noise from above me. I looked up and then I walked over to a carved out window.

I sat down on the windowsill and looked up at the roof. I saw Spinelli's back facing me, her head looking down and her right arm kept moving up and down and in all directions. Next to her was the black case my mom said she saw Spinelli leave the house with earlier. I quickly grabbed the edge of the roof and pulled myself up to the roof.

Once I was on the roof, I crawled over next to her and looked over her shoulder. She was drawing a picture.

It was centered on a couple in the very middle of the paper. They were hugging. There were some people around them, but they were blurred. It was snowing, and the lights around them were a light blue color with golden spots all around. The couples' faces weren't colored in, though. The only thing about them you could see what their bodies. Their heads were outlined with a pencil, but that was it. They didn't even have hair.

I took a seat next to her. I don't think she even realized I was sitting right there.

Spinelli finally put down the blue colored pencil and looked over at me. She jumped a little then smiled, "I had no idea you were here!" she laughed.

"I've been sitting here for about five minutes." I pointed out. Spinelli laughed again. I took the sketch book off of her lap and looked at the picture, "Are you entering this in the contest?" I asked her. She shook her head, "No way. That's just a doodle. What I'm planning is much better."

"No way! This picture is super good! You could win the contest for sure with this!" I argued. She shook her head, "No. Think about it Teej. I'm going to be entering this will people who might have been drawing ever since they were born! I started drawing in the fourth grade, then stopped, then started up again in the seventh grade! I need something much better then this if I want to win!"

"Hmm. You might be right. So, when ever you leave, you go up to your room to draw?" I asked, handing her back her sketch book.

She nodded and placed the book in the black case on the other side of her, "Yeah. Sometimes I just get this inspiration and I have to draw it down immediately. Sorry if you thought that was rude. But, I've always done that. This picture here," she pointed to her sketch book, "I got the inspiration today during court. When I was testifying."

"Why? That picture seems a little sad. It's like they're hugging goodbye in a sea of people. Did something sad happen during you being testifyed?" I asked.

"No quite the opposite, Teej. This picture is a girl hugging her lover after being away for ever. I plan on drawing a close up of the two, showing her crying into his chest because she missed him so much. The only problem is I don't know what they look like." she explained, matter-of-factly.

"Why don't you know? You're the artist."

"It's weird. While I was up there, I saw the picture, but the faces were obscure. I have no idea what they look like, and I don't want to draw in just any face. I want it to be the face of the two people. I need to find their face, but I have no idea where to look in all the corners of my mind. So, I'm just going to keep their faces blank until I find It." she explained.

I nodded, "But, what happened in court that made you want to draw that? What happened that gave you that inspiration?" I asked.

Spinelli bit her lip and looked down at her feet, "I don't know. While I was up on the stand, it just came to me. That's all." She finally said after a moment. I nodded. I wasn't going to believe that. But, now wasn't the best time to ask what really happened. "Come on. Let's get inside. I'm sure you wanna change out of those clothes." I said. She smiled, "Duh! I can't believe I have to wear this old lady suit to court another million times! So not fair!" Spinelli whined playfully.

I helped her pack up the art case and I helped her into the club house first.

_To be continued. . ._

_

* * *

_**Yay! u got done with it! I hope u liked it! da next chapter might be a little short, tho. cuz i'm thinking the next chapter will be of Spinelli remembering what went down at the trial. What did go down at the trial??? Will Gretchen tell TJ her true feelings for Vince? Does she even have feelings for Vince other then friendship??? WILL THE OLD GUY AS THE GYM TEACHER BE REPLACED BY SOMEONE WHO CAN DO SPORTS!!??!?!?!? lol. well, u'll have 2 keep reading to find out. ttyl ppl! Remember, R&R!!!! ^-^**

**~~~Taylor**


	3. The Trial

**I'm baaaack! Okay, people, dont hate me, but this chapter is MUCH shorter then all my other chapters. It's only 3 pages in my Word Works. But, i had to write this chapter so you guys would know what happened at the trial. Idk if i'm going to update tomorrow. I know how i want this story to end, but i cant think of what should happen in the next chapter. If any of you guys have ideas, like, if u wanna see some Vince/Gretch action, Mikey/Annie action, Gus/Chipy action (anytime i write about those 2, i start laughing. sorry, but i find then a funny couple 4 some unknown reason) but, plz do NOT ask me 2 write about some TJ/Spin action. I wanna save that stuff for later chapters. Or if u wanna make Spinelli have a mental break down in public, i'll do that. I'm good at writing that stuff cuz i watch Law&Order:SVU and i know how to write that stuff. XD lol. anyway, enjoy this short chapter from me! ^-^**

**I DO NOT OWN RECESS!!! I ONLY OWN PETE, EMILY, ANNIE, EVAN (sadly), THE MEAN LAWYER LADY, SPINELLI'S LAWYER, THE JUDGE, AND THATS IT!!!! PAUL AND JOE ARE THE AWSOME PEOPLE WHO OWN RECESS!!!! I OWN NOTHING!!!!**

Chapter Three - The Trial

_Spinelli's POV_

_November 3 . . . _

I walked into the house with TJ. We took a seat at the kitchen table and started to talk about random things. Like, what teacher is secretly seeing the principal, or when Mikey will admit he likes Annie.

But, to tell you the truth, I wasn't paying much attention to our conversation. I was thinking about what happened earlier that day, at the trial. About when I was under oath and up on the stand. I was happy TJ wasn't there today, because I didn't want him to see me like that. I wasn't expecting it to go that way.

_**Flashback**_

"_I call to the stand, Ashley Spinelli." the lawyer called. _

_I stood up and made my way to the stand. I raised my right hand and pledged to be under oath. I took a seat and the lawyer defending Evan stood up and walked up to me._

"_Miss Spinelli, how long had Mr. Parker been "abusing" you and your mother?" she asked. _

"_About three years." I answered. This was so easy. Evan was caught red handed and their was no doubt he was going to jail. Their was nothing this lady could say to get him to look like the good guy. _

"_Hmm, three years?" she asked. She started walking around in front of the jury. "You waited three years to turn in a man, who was allegedly abusing you and your mother?" _

"_I couldn't tell anyone. He threatened to kill my family. I couldn't let that happen." I told her. I kept reminding myself to stay clam. _

"_But, why now? You waited three years to call the police and tell them what happened. Why did you let the abuse take place for three years and finally tell when it got too far?" she asked, her voice starting to rise. _

"_Because back in Florida I had no friends! I had no one to turn to and when I came back here I had friends and I turned to them! They helped me! Then, I could finally get my siblings away! I could finally protect them and I did! They're safe from that mad man!" I argued. _

"_Miss Spinelli, you say you had no friends in Florida, correct?" she asked, walking over to the table she was sitting at with Evan and looking in a file._

"_Yes." I answered. _

"_Do you know the names of Alice McNulty, Emma Benson, Chad Simpson and Henry Landricks?" she asked. _

_I shifted in my seat, "Yes." _

"_Who were they?" she asked, walking up to me, file in hand. "They were in my class when I first moved to Florida. We hung out sometimes-"_

"_So, they were your friends?" she interrupted. I paused and shifted in my seat again, "Yes. But, I stopped being their friend after the abuse started." _

"_Why?" she asked. _

"_Because I thought if I hung out with them, I'd tell them what was going on and, knowing them, they'd tell their parents and their parents would tell the school and Evan would find out and kill my family." I explained. _

"_Really? How would Evan find out? If the school was informed of abuse, they wouldn't tell the parents, they'd inform the police. Evan would never know until the police was knocking at your door." she said to me, but was facing the jury._

"_I was thirteen. I thought he would figure it out. He even told me he had connections and would find out before the principal could dial 911. I had no choice but to cut off my friendship with them." I said, slouching in my seat. _

"_Mr. Parker let you go out, talk to anyone you pleased. He let you go to school, the mall, anywhere. You had plenty of opportunities to tell someone or runaway. But, you didn't. You let the abuse happen. You wouldn't do anything-"_

"_That isn't true! I did anything I could! Whenever he hit my mother I would always fight back! I would hit him, kick him, anything but he always over powered me! I did what I could!" I interrupted. _

"_But you didn't tell anyone! You were out free in the open and you knew what he was doing was wrong and you let it continue!"_

"_Stop it!" I told her._

"_You let it happen and did nothing! You are just as at fault for this as Mr. Parker!"_

"_Stop it!" I told her again. _

_She walked up to me and placed her hands on the stand, leaning on it, "You let it all happen! You did nothing and let Mr. Parker hurt your mother! You do know you could be put on trial for accessory to abuse! You could go to jail for knowing about this and doing nothing!" _

"_Shut up! Shut up! Stop it! Just be quiet!" I shouted, standing up and yelling in her face. My eyes were burning. _

"_Your honor, she is badgering the witness!" my lawyer shouted, standing up in his seat. _

_The judge banged her gavel, "Miss Marker, end this." the judge told her._

_She walked back up to her seat, "No further questions, your honor." _

"_Very well. Miss Spinelli, you may step down." the judge told me. I rubbed my eyes and walked back over to my seat. I dared myself to glace over at Evan. He was smiling evilly at me. I took a deep breath and leaned back in my seat. I felt like punching him in the face. _

_**End flashback**_

I started to set the table with TJ. "Spin, how about this weekend we all go to the mall and see that new movie that came out. _The Haunting of Molly Hartley_, I think it was called. What do you say? You, me, Vince, the whole gang. It'll be fun." TJ asked.

I thought for a moment, "Sure. As long as your mom can watch the twins, I mean. I don't think Pete and Emily would wanna watch that movie. I'm sure it'll give then nightmares."

He smiled and nodded, "I'm sure she will! This is great. I'll call Vince and everyone and tell them about it after dinner!"

I nodded. I heard Pete shout that Emily took his toy train and she wouldn't give it back. "I'll be right back." I told him, walking into the living room to break up the toy fight the twins have been having since they could grab.

_To be continued. . . _

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**Yay! Chapter done. Dont u think that mean lawyer lady is a bastard?!?!? SHE IS, ISNT SHE?!?!? anyway, i know, i know, i'm sure a judge wouldn't say "end this" but i haven't seen an episode of Law&Order:SVU when their at trial and the lawyer starts badgering the witness. So, i'm sorry that part is a little not right. PLEASE DONT BE MAD AT ME FOR THAT!!! XD lol. anyway, remember, if u have an idea for the next chapter of something u wanna read about, please tell me in a review. I'll make sure to put that in the next chapter, since i can't really think of anything right now. All ideas are good ones, remember that!!! It doenst matter how out there it is! (if its too out there, i will have to think on it) and, please dont be mad if when u read the next chapter its not ur idea, but someone elses. I promise, i only picked that idea cuz it made (A) sence with the story line, (B) wasnt crazy, (C) i knew how to write about that, and (D) it was the first thing someone suggested! XD lol. anyway, R&R and thanks 4 reading my story so far!!**

**~~~Taylor**


	4. Movie Trip

**I would like to thank ur1onlybravecoward for the idea for this chapter. THANK U SO MUCH!! U ROCK!!! lol. anyway, i worked hard on this chapter n i had 2 watch _The Haunting of Molly Hartley_ twice 2 write part of this chapter (not that that didnt suck. that movie rocked!!!!) lol, yeah, if any can give a guess why Spinelli started to feel sick at THAT part, tell me! I wanna know if u figured it out! Why she has suck a complex over her sister and brother and why she would get sick by just the thought of killing ur father *(spoiler)* XD lol. anyway, enjoy! ^-^**

**I DONT OWN RECESS!!!!**

_Chapter Four - Movie Trip_

_TJ's POV_

_November 8th__, Saturday. . . _

My mom told me Monday night what happened to Spinelli at the trial. I didn't want to say "sorry" or anything to Spinelli. I didn't want to make things awkward between us.

I ran downstairs. My red cap on backwards like always, a white t-shirt and a pair of jeans was what i was wearinf that day. I walked into the kitchen and said hello to my mom, who was on the phone with Becky, like always.

I grabbed an apple off the table and walked into the living room. Spinelli was sitting on the floor with Pete and Emily, helping them tie their shoes.

I smiled and took a bite of the apple.

"TJ!" I heard my mom whisper. I turned around and walked back into the kitchen. My mom had just hung up the phone.

"What's up mom?" I asked. She looked at me, her eyes slightly sad, "I talked to Becky. She said she saw that movie you guys are going to see today."

"Yeah? So?" I asked. I hoped my mom wouldn't tell me the ending. She always told me the ending of movies like _Molly Hartley _so I wouldn't enjoy it. I think she needs to get over that fact that I can now see PG-13 movies legally.

"There are some really intense scenes in that movie. Don't you think you should see something less," mom paused, "intense?" she asked.

I gave her a look. "I'm just saying! Why don't you guys go see that Chihuahua movie! Or, maybe, that High School Musical movie? Those seem like good movies!" my mom suggested.

I shrugged my shoulders and stared up at the ceiling, "MOM! Those are kiddy movies! I'm sixteen! All my friends are sixteen! And Chipy just turned thirteen! We can handle the movie! Stop treating us like babies!"

My mom grabbed my arm and pulled me into the back corner of the kitchen, "Shh! I am not worried about you! I'm worried about Spinelli!" she whispered.

"Why Spinelli? She loves movies like this."

"Look, I talked to this consular the other day when I went up to the hospital with the twins. She told me to keep an eye on Spinelli. Abuse can't always be just physical. He could have traumatized her temporarily; at least that's what her doctor told me."

"So, what? You're saying Spinelli is traumatized for a little while?" I asked.

She nodded, "But only for a little while. I signed Spinelli up to see the school consular once a week. If she see's the school consular, then I'm sure she'll get better sooner then later." **(A/N: i did NOT copy that from Molly Hartley. I thought of this park before i saw the movie, i sware!)**

I thought for a moment, "So? What does this have to do with Spinelli going to see the movie?" I asked.

"It's a horror movie! I'm worried something will happen! I'm worried she'll get scared! I'm only thinking of Spinelli's best interest-"

"You think Spinelli will get _scared_?" I asked, slighting laughing. "Mom, I think you need to take a nap or something. Because, Spinelli isn't afraid of anything. I know her. She won't get scared." I said, walking away from my mom.

"Are you not affected by this at all?" my mother asked. I stopped and turned around to her, "Affected by what?" I asked.

"I think you're too happy Spinelli is back to realize what is really going on." my mother said. I walked back up to her, "Going on with what? That my best friend when through something I could never go through? I know that mom. And, I'm trying to help her. I'm taking her out to the mall, to a movie with everyone! I'm taking her mind off what happened to her! I know exactly what's going on mom! I am completely affected by all this too. She's my best friend and I worry about her. Are you happy? I finally said it. I'm worried about her." I told her. I kept it in a whisper so Spinelli or the twins wouldn't hear. My mom bit her lip and walked over to the fridge, "TJ, I think you're too old to be acting like this." she said.

I threw my hands in the air and walking out of the room. Spinelli wasn't there, "Pete, Em, where's Spin?" I asked them, who were watching TV.

"Sissy went out side to play." Pete said, not turning away from the TV. I nodded and walked out the door. "Spin?" I called once I was on the porch.

I walked off the porch and saw Spinelli skipping on the driveway. I looked at the floor and a hopscotch board was under her feet.

"I didn't take you for a hopper." I chuckled, walking up to her. She turned around and smiled, "I've never played this game before, so when Emily told me she drew one out with your mom earlier, I decided to play a little before we left." she answered.

I smiled and quickly studied her. Her hair was down with a small braid on the side of her face. She was in a white t-shirt that had black suspenders and across the crest read "_ROCK THE BEAT" _and she was in blue jeans and denim mini skirt over it.

"Nice outfit. Are you going Juno on me or something?" I asked.

She went opened mouthed and smiled, walking up to me, "You like? My mom knew I liked Avril Lavigne, so when she found out Avril had her own clothing line she bought out almost all the Abbey Dawn clothes at Kohl's for my birthday. This shirt and skirt are Abbey Dawn. Jeans, I don't know. I got them at Wal-Mart."

I laughed, "You must really like Avril, huh?" She smiled, "I've been her fan for five years." she said, walking over to the porch. She sat down and I joined her. "I remember sitting in my room when I was eleven. I was having a problem with the homework so I took out my cell and started to text my new friend Alice. She told me that I should listen to the radio to get my mind off the homework. I did, and someone called in and requested the song _Losing Grip_. It was a good song, and then I looked up who was singing it and found out it was Avril Lavigne. That weekend I bought her CD _Let Go_, and that's it. I've been a big fan ever since." she explained.

"Hmm. I've heard of Avril before. She married Deryck Whibley, the lead singer of one of my favorite bands, Sum41. Have you ever been to one of her concerts?" I asked.

She shook her head, "Nope. I didn't want to go alone. My friends in Miami weren't fans of Avril Lavigne, so I never went. But, I did hear that she's going to be in the town one over from here at the end of March. The Friday before the art contest, actually. I'm gonna save up my money to get tickets. And now, I don't even care if any of you guys are a fan or not. I'm going." she made clear.

I leaned back, "Well, I've heard a few of her songs. I think I would like to go. I'll even pay for my own ticket. I got a job at Kelso's and I start on Monday after school. What do you say?"

She looked at me and smiled a bright smile, "Yeah! That would so rock!"

I smiled back and then a car horn went off. I looked at the road and Vince's mini van was sitting at the curve. Vince stuck his head out of the passenger seat window, "Come on guys! The mall awaits!"

We stood up and ran up to the car. Spinelli took a seat next to Gretchen in the back, and I took a seat next to Gus in the middle. Gretchen was in a skirt and blue t-shirt with flats on, Chipy was in a white button-down shirt and a knee length blue skirt and flats, Annie was in jeans and a yellow tank top and sneakers. Mikey was in jeans and black t-shirt, his hair was a little messy, but he wore a smile on his face like always. Gus was in his normal camouflage like always and his hair was the same as always, nothing new to report on Gus. And Vince, he was in a jersey for the school basketball team, a white shirt underneath and a pair of gray shorts with black and white sneakers.

I smiled. We were all the same as always. Nothing new to report there…

_Spinelli's POV_

We made our way up to AMC Theatre. Vince was the one who bought all the tickets for us (don't worry. We paid ourselves, we just didn't want to stand in that long line, so we picked Vince to stand in it and get the eight tickets.)

We bought four large popcorns and all the "couples" split a soda. (As in, Gus and Chipy only). We tried talking Mikey and Annie into sharing a soda, but all they did was blush and say they weren't a couple so they didn't have to share. Gretchen brought her own water bottle, Vince got a sports drink, Mikey got a slushy and Annie got the same, and TJ and I got the same: Pepsi.

We made our way into the theatre. "The best seats are the very back." Vince said. "Then we'll sit in the back." Gus said. Vince was the first in the back row (which was right by the door), and then Gretchen, Gus, Chipy, Mikey, Annie, TJ and I had the seat on the end. Soon, more and more people made their way into the theatre. I think I even say Ashley A. with Lawson.

The lights dimmed and the previews began to play.

_About an hour and fifteen minutes later. . ._

I started to feel sick in the middle of the movie. I didn't know why. I was more jumpy then normal and any scene when it was dark or something happened that was only minor I jumped.

It was around the end of the movie. The girl playing Molly, Haley Bennett, is with her "boyfriend" Josef, Chace Crawford, and he just showed her a birthday cake, so she's getting freaked out.

"I knew he was involved from the start." TJ whispered to me with a smile on his face. I was gripping the end of my skirt, turning my knuckles white; I forced a smiled, "Yeah. Me too." I whispered back. TJ turned his head back to the movie. I looked back up. The school consular lady just walked in, and a man pulled Molly's father in. He was bleeding. I felt my stomach churn.

Molly was about to _k-kill _her father. She was kneeling on the floor, praying, and the consular just handed her a knife. I wasn't paying attention to what they were saying. I was too scared from the movie for some reason.

Molly took the knife and stood up, holding it above her head. The only thing I heard was her father say _"do it" _and I felt sick. Before I could even see Molly stab her father, I covered my mouth and ran out of the theatre. I ran down the hall to the girls' bathroom and into an empty stall. I didn't know why I became sick, but I did and I threw up.

I stood up after a moment, the toilet flushed automatically, and I walking out of the stall. I rinsed out my mouth in the sink and checked my hair. It was still clean. My shirt was good, and knowing that, I grabbed a paper towel and wiped my face.

"Spinelli? You in there?" I heard someone call. TJ, actually. "Yeah. Be out in a minute." I called. I threw the towel away and walked out.

TJ was leaning against the wall next to the door. Once he saw me he walked up to me, concern in his eyes.

"What happened? You okay?" he asked. I nodded, "Yeah. I'm fine." I said.

"You sure? You look a little pale." he said. I nodded, "I just felt a little woozy. I needed to," I thought for a moment, "Empty my system, if that makes sense?"

TJ thought for a moment, "Oh! You threw up! Are you okay?"

"Shh! Shh, shh, shh! Don't broadcast it to the whole theatre, Teej!" I said, coving his mouth. I took hold of my wrist, "Okay, okay. Sorry."

"Were you the only one who followed me out?" I asked, looking behind TJ. He nodded, "Yeah. When you ran out, I told everyone I'd check on you. I'll text Vince and tell him to tell everyone that you're okay." TJ took out his cell phone and started to text Vince. "I-" I paused. TJ looked up at me.

"I don't want to hang out with the gang right now. Is it okay if I just walk around the mall?" I asked. TJ nodded, "Sure. I think we were planning on going to the food court after the movie, but I'll talk them out of it so you can be alone." TJ said.

"N-no." I stuttered. I couldn't believe I was going to ask this! "I was thinking _we _could walk around the mall. Together."

TJ looked a little red but smiled, "okay. I'll text the guys to leave. I hope they don't think of us being rude, though."

I thought for a moment, "Forget the mall thing then! That was stupid. I can't kick them out of the mall just because I wanna be alone. We could always go some place else. The park maybe."

TJ nodded, "Yeah, that's better then kicking them out of the mall." TJ finished up the text and placed his cell phone back in his pocket. "Alright. Let's go." he smiled.

I smiled and nodded my head. "Oh, crap! This means you missed the end of the movie!" I said after a minute of thinking.

TJ smiled, "Yeah. You get to miss the ending too. But, I think the movie will be out on DVD sometime in February. I'll just rent it and skip to the ending."

I nodded, "Yeah. Okay, I guess that's a good plan."

TJ smiled and nodded his head, "Good. Now, to the park!" he declared and we ran all the way to the escalator.

_To be continued. . ._

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**Yay!!! Its done!!!! I feel so proud!!!! ^-^ ok, ok, u think Spinelli likes Avril too much?? Well, i DO NOT i wanna see people leave a review saying that Spinelli doesnt seem like the type to like Avril or whatever. I have a plan 4 Spinelli liking Avril Lavigne. anyway, please DO NOT leave a review about "HOW MUCH I WANNA SEE TJ AND SPINELLI GET TOGETHER IN THE NEXT CHAPTER!!! I MEAN, THEY R GOING 2 THE PARK TOGETHER!!!!" do NOT leave a review like that!!!! I have a plan on WHEN they get together and it is NOT in chapter 5!!! i plan on something else and if u are a good little boy or girl and review like u SHOULD then i might give u a hint about future chapters in a message...=^.^= lol. (thats my friend's face. she'd kill me if she found out i used her face! XD) lol. anyway, U ROCK 4 READING THIS!!!**

**~~~Taylor**


	5. Not Just a Walk in The Park

**YAY!!! its done. chapy 5. this one tells u about spinelli's daddy, and their is a little TJ/Spin action. just a little. anyway, R&R and enjoy this story!!**

**I DONT OWN RECESS!!!**

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Chapter Five - Not Just a Walk in The Park

_TJ's POV_

_November 8th__, Saturday, continued. . ._

We walked into town square park. It wasn't the type of park with swings or slides. It had a big field with green grass and trees, their was a fountain in the middle of it all, and an ice cream stand was at the entrance.

"I can't believe hardly anyone is here." Spinelli said.

"The only ones here are us and the ice cream vendor." I said, looking around the park.

Spinelli walked up to the fountain. She stepped up onto the rim and started to walk around it like a trapeze artist.

"Wow. Look at all the coins on the fountain." Spinelli awed. I looked in the water and saw a sea or silver coins covering the floor of the fountain. "Yeah. Our town might not be super big, but a lot of people in it come here to make wishes."

I saw Spinelli turn her head and look at the ice cream vendor. I turned around and smiled, "How about I go get us some ice cream?"

She smiled, "Yeah. Here, can you get me a chocolate?" she asked, reaching in her pocket to get, what I guessed was money.

"No, no. I'll pay for it. Be right back." I smiled, holding up my hands. I walked over to the vendor and ordered two cups of chocolate ice cream. I paid the man and walked back up to Spinelli.

But, something stopped me half way there. I don't really know how to explain it. It was a feeling inside me that I didn't know how to describe. But, the moment I saw Spinelli, I froze.

Spinelli had jumped from the rim of the fountain and up to some birds on the ground. She knelt down to them and they flew around her. She laughed.

I think she figured out I was watching her, because she turned her head to look at me, then she smiled and waved. I felt my face heat up and I smiled back.

She stood up and walked up to me, taking one of the ice cream cups from my hands, "Hey, thank you so much. I own you an ice cream." she laughed. I smiled and handed her a plastic spoon, "I'll hold you to that."

We both shared a laugh and started to walk around the park.

_Spinelli's POV_

_That night. . ._

I lied in bed. It was around eleven o'clock. I tucked the twins into bed at nine and helped TJ with his weekend math homework (as in, TJ and I called Gretchen for help.)

I couldn't sleep. I kept thinking about what happened. Not about what happened at the movie theatre, or anything. About . . . something else.

I sat up in bed. I had thrown on a pair of short shorts that were light blue with stars on them and a white tank top I bought four years ago that still fit. I hate being so small.

I got out of bed and walked down the hall. Their wasn't a light coming out from under TJ's door. I had a feeling he was asleep, but I knocked anyway.

Nothing at first. I knocked again. I heard a creaking noise, then it go quiet again. I sighed; he was asleep.

I turned around and started to walk back up the hall.

"Spinelli?"

I turned around. TJ was standing in his doorway, a look of confusion was all over his face. I walked back up to him, "Sorry. Did I wake you up?"

He shook his head. I looked down at him. He wasn't even in pajamas. He was wearing jeans and a t-shirt, the same thing he was wearing today. The only thing that was different was he wasn't wearing his cap. His brown wavy (not messy anymore. It's became wavy over the years, I was guessing) now cap-less.

"No. I was listening to some music with the headphones on. I thought someone was knocking at the door. Is something wrong?" he asked.

I shook my head. Then paused. Then nodded, then shook my head again. He chuckled, "So, a maybe?"

I smiled, "yeah. A maybe."

"Come on in." he said quickly, stepping out of the doorway. I nodded and stepped inside. His room was dark. The only light in the door was from the window and a small green light from a portable CD player on his bed. "Want me to turn the lights on?" he asked.

I shook my head, "No. I'm not afraid of the dark, so I think I can handle it." He nodded and walked back to his bed. "Shouldn't you be asleep?" he asked, placing one ear plug in his hear, the other free so he could hear me.

"Shouldn't you?" I shot back. He smiled and nodded his head.

It was quiet for a minute. "So, Spin, did you wanna talk or something?" TJ asked.

I bit my lip. What should I say. It had been about a month since the twins and I moved in. That was long enough for me to know I could tell TJ anything and he couldn't kick me out for it, right? **(A/N: my friend told me that you had to wait a certain amount of time before you tell someone you are living with something. Like, you have to wait a week before telling your parents you like a guy/girl. Something like that.)**

"Actually, their was something I," I paused. Should I really tell him this?

I remembered my mom told me I shouldn't keep things in after he died. I didn't tell her what I felt. Now, everything was bottling up inside and the lid I had on all those feelings were flowing out now. Now that I saw that scene in _Molly Hartley_.

"I wanted to tell you about my dad's death." I finally said. TJ's face took on a look of shock and he removed his one ear plug and sat up straighter. I walked over to his bed and sat next to him. I stared down at my feet.

It happened like this . . ."

_About three and a half years earlier. . . _

_It was a Saturday. I sat at home, constantly texting Alice and Emma. My mom was at her book club down the street. I heard the home phone ring and I got up from the sofa and walked into the kitchen. _

"_Hello?" I said, my voice slightly annoyed. _

"_Hey pookie! I'm just leaving work and I wanted to talk to your mom." my dads voice rang in my ear._

_I sighed. Dad always called just to talk to mom and see if she was feeling alright. Weird. "No, dad. She's at her book club." I said, started to text Alice back. _

"_Oh."_

_I sighed. He always looked forward to his little talks with mom. I needed to get his mind off the talk and on to something else. _

"_Hey, dad, why don't you pick me up something on your way home from work?" I asked._

"_Like what?" _

"_Like," I paused for a moment. What did I need? "um, can you pick me up some," I paused. What the hell did I need?! "tampons! I need tampons, dad. Could you pick me up some, please?" I asked. Sure, it was embarrassing to ask your father to walk into a store and buy tampons, but that sure as hell was something to get his mind off talking with mom until he got home. _

"_O-oh! Um, sure pookie! When your mom gets back, tell her I'll be home around six, okay? I'm sure the store is packed." I heard him say. _

_I nodded, shoving the phone between my shoulder and ear some I could text with both hands. "Mm-hmm. Yeah. Sure dad." I was about to hang up the phone when I heard my dad shout into the receiver, "Wait! Pookie!" _

_I pulled the phone back up to my ear, "What dad?" I asked, completely annoyed now. _

"_I love you." he said sincerely._

_I sighed. He always said that. The word "love" was used too much in this world, and he wasn't helping._

"_I love you too dad." I sighed. I pulled the phone away from my ear and placed it back on the receiver. I walked back into the living room and plopped down on the sofa. _

_End Flashback, present day . . ._

"I believe it's my fault my dad's dead." I finally said. I didn't dare look at TJ. I felt too bad. Did he even want to know his best friend was the reason someone was dead in the world? That, if that man didn't die, none of this would have happened?

"I feel like I was the one who drove that car into my dad's side of the car. I feel like it's my fault." I chuckled, "What am I thinking? It _was_ my fault." I murmured.

I looked at TJ. He wasn't looking at me or the floor. He was staring out his window.

"Teej," I started.

"Come," he grabbed my wrist and pulled me out the bedroom door. "Where are we going?" I whispered as we passed his parents bedroom.

He wouldn't answer. He just pulled me all the way down the stairs and out the front door.

"Teej, are you crazy! It's super cold out here! And I'm in summer clothes! Are you trying to get me sick?!" I shouted at him in hushed tone.

He turned around, facing the house then turned me around. "See this?" he asked, waving his hand in front of the house. I nodded. He turned me to face him, "See me?" he asked.

I nodded, giving him a skeptical look. "Have you lost your nut, Teej?" I asked. He shook his head. "I know this is gonna sound crazy and really mean to the dead, but" he paused.

"Maybe it's destiny." he sighed out.

"Destiny? How?" I asked putting my hands on my hips.

"Think about it. If you hadn't told your dad to go get tampons, then he wouldn't have died, you wouldn't have needed Evan, you would still be friends with those guys in Miami, and you would still be in Miami! You would have never came back, and we would have never gotten in touch again!" he explained, a smile on his face.

I thought a moment, "So, you think my dad's death, was destiny?" I asked, still slightly confused.

He chuckled, "I know it sounds silly. And, you're probably mad that I'm saying this about your dad, but think about it. You would have never come back here if Evan hadn't suggested the move. And Evan would have never came along if your dad hadn't died."

"So, you're happy Evan came alone?" I asked, still confused.

"N-no! I hate Evan, but the only good thing he's ever done was suggest the move! That's it! I'm on your side one hundred percent!" he answered quickly.

I smiled, "Yeah. I guess that's about right. But, I still feel a little guilty." I walked up to him, staring down at my feet.

"I don't think you should feel guilty. You were only trying to help." he said. I stared up at him. He was smiling. I didn't know why, but my stomach started to do a flip-flop kind of thing and I felt a strange urge to relive the Experiment from the fourth grade, only not in front of so many people and to actually say I enjoyed it.

I felt my face turn hot and I turned my head and started to walk back to the house, "C-come on, Teej! It's late! I wanna get to bed! I don't wanna sleep the whole last day of the weekend away!" I called.

I turned my head. TJ was a scarlet red and staring at me. I waved my hand and he blinked. Then smiled and ran up to me, "Yeah. Plus, I talked to Vince before. He wants to meet up tomorrow at eleven. I can't sleep in tomorrow or he'll kill me." he joked.

I chuckled and we walked back into the house and up to our rooms.

_To be continued . . ._

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**A/N:**

**yeah, i know. not my best chapy. i just wanted to let u guys know whats going on. anyway, R&R and thank u so much 4 reading this!! ^-^**

**PREVIEW OF CHAPTER 6: Spinelli meets up with Mikey in the school theatre and she questions him about his _real_ feelings for Annie. But, in return, Mikey asks Spinelli about her _real_ feelings for TJ. Meanwhile, TJ pushs Vince to ask Gretchen out.**

**~~~Taylor**


	6. Happy Holidays!

**YAY!!! Chapter 6 is up. I've been working hard on this one! And, i plan on making the next chapter a continued one of this one. since their is some stuff that needs to be done RIGHT NOW and it cant wait for another time lap. So, i plan in having the next chapter take place on the day _after _this one and then takes place on christmas day. thats my plan. anyway, enjoy! ^-^**

**I do not own recess, or anything. i only own Pete, Emily, and Annie. Paul and Joe are the awsome ppl who own recess! ^-^**

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Chapter Six - Happy Holidays!

_Spinelli's POV_

_December 19th__ . . ._

I was sitting in math class for last period. Boring! But, for some reason, I needed math in my future, so I had to take it. But, the class isn't called a "Math class" it's called "Algebra class"! Why couldn't they just call in math and save the ink?

Another reason I hated my math class: the Ashley's were in it.

Another reason: I had to sit next to the leader of the Ashley's, Ashley A.

The teacher was sitting at his desk, and had informed the class that since it's the last day of school until January 3rd, we could talk freely, but had to stay in our desks.

And, guess what? No one I liked was in my math class. I was stuck with the Ashley's and a bunch of other people I didn't know.

I did the only thing I knew to do. Took out my sketch book and began to draw. It was so close to the end of school bell to ring. So close! But, eventually, something was going to happen that I knew I couldn't prevent sitting where I was.

"Whatcha doin'?" a too-perky-for-her-own-good voice chimed in my ears. I looked over at Ashley A. Her blond hair was straight as a line, wearing a pink sweater and bejeweled jeans with real pink jewels. Her make-up was perfect like it always was. She kind of reminded me of Regina from the movie _Mean Girls_.

I shot her a look, "Nothing you would understand, powder puff."

She chuckled, "Oh, Spinelli. You still think a little comment like that would come to offense to me? You are _so_ stuck in the past."

I rolled my eyes, "Oh. Then how about, slut?" I asked sarcastically. This time she rolled her eyes, "Like, you are such a loser, Spinelli. I was just asking a simple question." she hissed.

I rolled my eyes. Now who was living in the past?

Finally, the bell rang! I placed my sketch book in my bag and started to walk out of the room. TJ had to work after school, Vince said this morning he had last minute shopping, the same with everyone else. Everyone but Mikey, that is. He never said what he was doing after school today.

I was about fifty feet from the front doors of the school. So close!

But, something stopped me once again. I stopped in front of double doors. I stepped inside. It was dark all around. The only light was on stage. I had stepped into the school theatre.

I walked down the aisle to the stage. "Hey! Anyone here?!" I called backstage.

"Oh, hi Spinelli!" I heard someone say. I turned around and sitting at a table in the back that had a computer and some speakers was Mikey!

"Hey big guy. What are you still doin' here? It's winter break! Both of us should be out there, running around in that fresh show! Why are you still in here?" I asked, walking up to him.

As I stepped closer I realized their was more on the desk Mikey was sitting at. There was a bunch of bottons and knobs, a microphone and about a million plugs plugged into one outlet.

Mikey chuckled, "Maybe you should stop calling me big guy. That way, it'll be easier for you to stop."

I shrugged, "I don't know, Mikey. You might not be big anymore, but you sure as hell are tall. You are still big to me, Mikey."

He smiled, "You're just as short as ever, huh?" I shot him a death glare, "Watch it, Mikey."

He laughed. "Okay, okay. Sorry."

I heard an old fashion ring tone as Mikey's cell phone rang. He pulled it out of his pocket and stared at the screen. The corners of his mouth edged into a smile. He had a text message, but who from?

He put the phone back in his pocket and stood up, "Sorry, Spin. I gotta jet. I completely spaced and forgot I was meeting Annie at the Pictures with Santa thing at the mall. She's taking her little sister and she wanted me to come with her so she wouldn't have to stand in line alone." Mikey paused, "Well, she won't be there with someone her age. She'll be there with a five year old, which is like being there alone since they are nothing alike." he explained quickly.

I nodded, and followed him down to the stage. "Hey, Mikey," I called as he put his backpack on.

"Yeah?"

I thought for a second. Should I really ask him? He might just blush and deny it, like always.

"Do you like Annie?" I asked. Mikey completely stopped what he was doing and stared at me. "W-What?" he stuttered.

"Don't play dumb Mikey! You like her, we can all tell. Just be a man I know you are and fess up!" I argued, placing my hands firmly on my hips.

He sighed, "It's that obvious?"

"Duh!" I shouted. He smiled, "Yeah, I do. I do like Annie. But," Mikey's eyes grew sad and he stared at the stage, "Annie doesn't like me yet."

"Yet? What do you mean?" I asked.

"I mean, Annie was dating this guy about two years ago, but after a mouth he had to move away. When she told me she still had feeling for him, I knew I couldn't tell her I liked her. So, I'm gonna wait until she's over him and starts liking me to ask her out." he explained.

I sighed, "Mikey you stupid head!" I shouted, "If Annie is asking you to meet her at the mall, hanging with you all the time, as in more then everyone else, and if you two blush every time we ask if you two like each other, then it means she likes you too! Gosh, how dense can you get?!"

He paused, "Really?"

I felt like falling over. He really was that dense! I shook my head, "Wow, Mikey. Why don't you ask Annie out on a holiday date? Take her to see that Christmas movie. What was it called? Um . . . _Four Christmases_! Or _Seven Pounds_! Those are good movies. I saw _Four Christmases _with Teej and his folks the weekend it came out and I was planning on seeing _Seven Pounds _tonight. That is, if I can spare the cash. Just, think about it, okay Mikey? I gotta go. See ya." I turned and started to walk up the aisle.

"What about you?" I heard Mikey called. I stopped and turned around. "What about me?" I asked. Mikey walked up to me,

"How do you feel, Spinelli? About TJ." Mikey asked me.

I bit my lip and felt my face flush a little, "I-" I paused. Mikey had come clean to me. He told me his real feelings. It wouldn't have been right to lie like that, especially since it was the holidays and everyone was being all happy and speaking the truth.

I nodded to myself. Mikey was a great guy. He wouldn't go telling people. I could trust him just like how he could trust me.

"My feelings for Teej are," I paused again. Was I really doing the right thing?

"They are way past friendship, I'll tell you that." I finally said. I waved Mikey goodbye and walked out the theatre doors, leaving Mikey standing there, who was smiling like Santa himself.

_

* * *

__TJ's POV. . . _

I walked inside at around seven. Working from three thirty to seven on week days and three to seven on weekends was easy, especially since it was at Kelso's and that was the best place to work part time at.

My mom and dad were hanging up the stockings and Pete and Emily were playing with the Nutcracker dolls on the floor. But Spinelli wasn't there.

"I'm back." I called, placing my backpack down by the stairs.

"Hi sweetie! How was your day?" my mom asked with a smile. I chuckled a little at the sight of her Santa Clause hat that matched not only my dad's, but Pete and Emily's too.

"It was fine. But Kelso's was full of little kids buying cheep gifts for their families. It was kind of funny. By the way, where's Spin? I thought she'd like to decorate the tree?" I asked, walking up to the pine tree set up in the corner.

"Hmm, now that I think about it, where is Spinelli?" my dad repeated.

"You mean you don't know?" I asked. My mom walked over to a box set on the couch and pulled out another stocking. A new one that said "Pete" on it.

"Well, I saw her walk in when school got out. But, I was so preoccupied with the decorating, I guess I didn't notice if Spinelli went out or went up to her room." my mom explained.

"I'll go check." I said, walking over to the stair case. I got to the second floor and walked down the hall way to Spinelli's room. I knocked a few times, "Spinelli? Spinelli, you in there?"

I took a risk and turned the door knob. I stepped inside quietly and looked around.

Spinelli was lying in bed, fast asleep. Her laptop sitting on the nightstand and her art supplies scattered on her bed and a piece of paper hanging in her hand that had fallen off the bed.

I walked over and looked at the screen.

I should have known. She was looking up the ticket prices for Avril Lavigne's concert in March. The ticket she was looking at was at a very high price. Two hundred dollars, not including tax and mailing fees. There was no way Spinelli could save that kind of money without a job. And Spinelli refused to get a job, since having a job would take time out of her day when she could be working on her art.

I sighed. Spinelli was such a big fan but she would never have enough money to see her. Plus, when ever the twins needed something, Spinelli would pay for it out of her concert money. She must have lost a lot.

I took the laptop off the night stand and placed it on the desk in the corner. I picked up the scattered colored pencils and papers. I placed them in there cases I set then up by the desk.

I walked back up to Spinelli and took the paper out of her hands. It was that one picture she was working on that one time. The faces were still missing. But, the girl's hair was colored in.

It was a dark raven color. But, that was it. I guess Spinelli still couldn't find there faces. I placed the picture on the desk and took the blanket Spinelli must have kicked to the floor and placed it on top of her so she stayed warm. I brushed back and piece of stray hair out of Spinelli's face when I heard my cell phone ring. I quickly walked out of the room and answered it.

"Hello?"

"Did you talk to Gretch yet?" the voice asked. I sighed. It was Vince. "No, I didn't."

"Dude! It's been, like, forever since I told you and you said you'd talk to her!" he argued. I shook my head, I was facing much more serious things at the moment, I didn't want to handle Vince's whining, "Dude, if you want to know so badly, ask her yourself."

"What?! I told you the first time, I couldn't-"

"No! I will not take that as an answer, LaSalle! Don't tell me you, Vince LaSalle, are afraid of asking someone out? Asking someone you've known since first grade out!?" I argued.

"But, Teej-"

"No buts, man! It's only Gretchen! I know you can do it, man! You have to! Before someone else does!" I shot back.

"Who?" Vince asked.

I thought for a moment. "I did hear that Jeffrey guy still has the little crush on Gretch. He might be able to ask her out and she might say yes." I answered. Sure, it was a lie, but Vince didn't know that.

"What?!" Vince shouted. I hid a small laugh at Vince's reaction, "Yeah. That's why you should ask Gretch out to a movie or something. I heard that _Seven Pounds _movie comes out tonight. Didn't Gretch say she wanted to see that? And you are a big Will Smith fan. It'll be perfect. Just ask her. I bet she'll say yes." I explained.

"You sure she'll say yes?" Vince asked.

I nodded, "Totally. Trust me, man. Knowing Gretchen, she'll say yes. She's will to give anything a try. Believe me." I assured him.

I heard him sigh, "Alright. Fine man. I'll go ask her to a movie."

"Tonight." I said.

"Tonight!?" Vince shouted, his voiced cracked a bit.

"Yes tonight! Go to her house right now and ask her! If you don't you'll regret it! Now do it!" I told him.

I heard him sigh again, "Man, if she says no-"

"She won't!"

"But, what if she-"

"No! No "what if's" right now! Just like what coach says, no what if's in the game! No what if's in real life either! Now, go and ask her out!" I argued back.

"Fine!" Vince stated and hung up. I smiled triumphantly and placed my cell phone back in my pocket.

"TJ, dear, can you come down here and help with the lights?!" I heard my mom call.

"Sure!" I called back, walking quietly down the steps. I turned into the living room and up to my dad, who was struggling to untangle the tangled up mess of lights.

I looked in the kitchen really quick and saw my mom wrapping some presents. I looked at my dad, "Hey, dad, have you guys gotten Spinelli's gift yet?" I asked.

My dad started to look frustrated and started pulling at the lights, "Well, her brothers sent us some presents for her and the twins, asking us to wrap them since they were worried that wrapping would be ruined because of the mail. And you mom and I were thinking of getting her an art kit of something. Since she likes art so much." he explained.

"So, you didn't buy her presents yet?" I asked.

He nodded. I turned around and walked into the kitchen. I heard my dad call, "Wait! What about the lights?!"

"Mom, mom!" I repeated as I walked up to her. She quickly threw a big piece of wrapping paper over the unwrapped presents, "TJ! Don't do that when I'm wrapping! I don't want you to see your presents!" she argued.

I shook my head, "Yeah, yeah. Mom, how much money are you willing to spend on Spinelli's presents?" I asked her.

My mom looked a little baffled, and then shrugged, "Why? Do you have an idea for a present?" she asked.

I smiled and nodded my head, "Yeah. But, the real thing won't come until about three months after Christmas, if that's okay." I explained.

My gave me a skeptic look and raised an eyebrow, "How much is this going to cost?" she asked.

I smiled, "Not much. That is, if everyone pitches in." I stated. I sat mom down in a chair and quickly explained my plan.

_To be continued . . ._

* * *

**YAY! IT'S DONE! XD first things first, the theatre thing i knew right off the bat cuz i am a theatre student at school and they have that same table at the back on the theatre to take care of the lights and sound stuff. (but i aint tect, i'm an actress, so i dont no the terms 4 em) next, idk what TJ's family ceribrates in Decmeber. So, since i only know how to write about Christmas stuff, i had then set up fro Christmas. Sorry, if i got it wrong. But, its too late to change it. So, just deal with it, okay? anyway, i really like how this one turned out. and i have a good plan for the next chapter. sadly, idk when i'll post that. i might post it tonight, or tomorrow, or sometime this week. idk yet. i gotta start writing it first , if u could R&R n tell me wat chu think and thank u so much for reading my story so far. **

**~~~Taylor**


	7. A Present to Remember

**Hi hi! I'm baaaaaack!! OMG, it's been a whole week!!! Whoa!! I am so sorry i made u wait that long! Anyway, this chapter is _very _short. It's only 1,575 words! Thats much shorter then all my other chapters! But, i thought you guys would like to find out what happened on Christmas. (even tho it's April.) lol. anyway, I hope you all enjoy! ^-^**

**I don't own Recess. Paul and Joe do. Not me.**

Chapter Seven: A Present to Remember

_Spinelli's POV_

_December 25th__, Thursday…_

I had no idea how late I stayed up last night. Pete and Emily kept insisting they stay up to see Santa, so I had to stay in there room until they fell asleep. Maybe it was around two in the morning? Three?

I was lying in bed. Hoping I could sleep for another five hours, when the pitter patter of feet came running up the stairs and into my room.

"Spinelli! Spinelli! Wake up! Santa came, Santa came!" Emily squealed, shaking my shoulder.

"Yeah! Get up! You're sleeping when you could be opening all your presents!" Pete said, pulling at my blankets.

I rubbed my eyes. How were they so awake this early when they stayed up until around two the night before?

I sat up in bed and looked at my alarm clock. 10:37 A.M.

I sighed, "Guys, go down stairs. I'll be there in a minute." I told them. They smiled and ran out of the room. I slowly stood up and walked into the bathroom across the hall.

I knew I couldn't take a shower, since Pete and Emily were so excited about the presents that they would come running in and pulling me downstairs to open the presents. I shuttered at the thought.

I brushed all the knots out of my hair and pulled it into a ponytail; I brushed my teeth and washed my face. Once I was down with that I made my way downstairs and saw Mr. and Mrs. Detweiler sitting in the living room, watching the news, Pete and Emily were eyeing the presents around the tree like they were wild boars and the presents were their pray.

But, where was TJ?

I stepped into the living room and Mrs. Detweiler turned and smiled at me, "Good morning Spinelli! Merry Christmas!"

I smiled and nodded my head, "Merry Christmas to you too."

"Can we open presents now?!" Pete and Emily asked in unison.

Mr. Detweiler chuckled, "Sure. TJ! TJ, come on! We're opening presents!" he called.

"I'm coming, I'm coming!" I heard TJ's voice shout from the dining room. A few moments later TJ came walking in with a small box in his hand. He placed it on a stack of presents and took a seat next to me on the sofa.

One by one, we opened all the presents. Pete and Emily got at least twenty different toys from Joey and Vito, Mr. and Mrs. Detweiler, me and TJ.

Mr. Detweiler got some new hardware supplies and some clothes. Mrs. Detweiler got a gold locket from Mr. Detweiler and some new cooking supplies.

TJ got about ten new video games, an autographed picture of Derek Jeter.

I got a new art kit, some new clothes, a few CD's and a letter from Joey and Vito telling me how everything is going and that they'll be here for the art contest in March.

By 11:30, there were only two presents left. One for TJ and one for me.

Mr. Detweiler handed TJ his present, "Oh, I wonder if _this _present is the one with the car keys in them." He stated, shaking the present by his ear.

"Oh, just open it TJ!" Mrs. Detweiler told him.

TJ rolled his eyes and ripped the wrapping paper off the small box. He tore off the lid and took out a slip of paper.

"Wha-" he stated, staring at the paper. "What does it say?" I asked.

He started to read the paper aloud, "Dear TJ, we know you wanted a car for your birthday, but you didn't get it. We also know you wanted a car for Christmas, but you didn't get it either. But, your mother and I have come to a conclusion. We're meet half way with the money. I'll match my money with yours and you can get a car. How's that sound? Dad."

A huge grin appeared on TJ's face and he ran up and hugged his parents, "Thank you so much, you guys! It sounds great! I already have about seven hundred saved up since I was thirteen! Thank you, you guys! You rock!" he said. They hugged him back.

"Alright, alright. We still have one more present! Sit down, son!" Mr. Detweiler said. TJ nodded a smile still on his face and he grabbed the last present and handed it to me.

I looked at the tag.

_To: Spinelli, from: Everyone!_

I pulled off the wrapping paper and tore off the lid. Two slips of colored paper were sitting inside. They were colored with pink and black with stickers all over.

"Do you like it?!" Emily asked. "I helped color!" Pete butted it. I smiled and nodded my head at them. "Yeah, it rocks." I said, taking the papers out of the box. I turned the papers over and saw it said _Avril Lavigne _on the back, then _Row A, 50 center, _and _Row A, 51 center._

They made me concert tickets. "These rock guys. Thanks so much." I told them. "I had to do the writing since they don't know how to spell yet." TJ told me.

I nodded. Even though they weren't the real things, I was happy Pete, Emily and TJ took the time to make them.

"But," I started, looking at the tag again, "What do you mean "everyone" on the tag? Only you three made 'em, didn't you?" I asked.

I looked around the room. Everyone had a smile on their faces and where extremely silent.

"Spin," TJ said, "Check your stocking." he said, pointing at the stocking hanging over the fire place.

I looked at him quizzically, and stood up and walked over to the stockings.

I took mine and stuck my hand inside, feeling around for something.

Finally, I felt something and pulled it out. It was a small box that held a digital camera. What did a digital camera have to do with the fake Avril Lavigne tickets I had in my other hand? I place the camera on floor by my feet and continued to look around for something. I felt something else and I pulled it out.

It was an envelope. An envelope with my name on it. I tore it open and pulled out a small card. On the front it said:

_Spinelli,_

_We hope you have a great time! _

_Love, all of us_

I looked back at everyone, and I opened the card.

Something fell out of the card and onto the floor. _Two_ something's, actually.

I bent down and picked them up. I studied them closely.

They were from Ticket Master, the date on them was from a year ago, and the name of the artist it said on the ticket was. . .

"Avril Lavigne…?" I mumbled.

I looked at Mr. and Mrs. Detweiler then at TJ.

"What?" I asked them. "Well, Ticket Master doesn't send the actual tickets until about a month or so before the concert, so I went on EBay and got tickets from her last concert last year, so you had something worthwhile to open today." TJ explained.

I was still slightly confused, "Wait? Does this mean . . .?" I stared again.

"The concert starts at five at The Energy Music Theatre in Detroit. We looked it up. The concert won't be over until about nine. It'll take a few hours to get there so you should leave at around noon or maybe earlier," Mrs. Detweiler explained.

"Wait! You mean," I paused, "you guys all bought me the tickets?" I asked.

"Well, not just us," TJ stated. "Mom, dad, Vince, Gretch, Mikey, Annie, Gus, Chipy, Becky, Vito, Joey, me and even Mr. Kelso chipped in. You never saw her live and after being her fan for five years, you deserve a chance to go. And, there was no way you could afford those tickets so everyone pitched in to buy them."

I started down at the tickets. The real ones would be here in a few months. Front row, center tickets! Two of them.

"Wait? They even paid for your ticket, Teej?" I asked. He chuckled, "yeah right. Everyone only paid for _your_ ticket. I had much _more_ money in my bank account then seven hundred dollars. I bought my own ticket."

I stared back at the tickets. I couldn't help myself. A huge smiled spread across my face and I ran up to Mr. and Mrs. Detweiler and hugged them.

They hugged me back. After I separated from them I hugged Pete and Emily and made my way over to TJ.

"Were you the one who thought of this?" I asked him. He smiled, "Who else?" he smiled.

I hugged him and took one of the old tickets and handed it to him, "Here. Hold on to it. It is _your_ ticket, after all." I told him.

He half smiled and rolled his eyes.

"Okay! Now that all the presents are done, let's start to clean up while I go call Becky!" Mrs. Detweiler said, walking into the kitchen.

I placed the ticket into my pajama pockets and started to help everyone clean up.

_To be continued . . ._

* * *

**Yay!! It's all done! I hope you liked it! I tired my best. I might have chapter 8 up by tonight or tomorrow. MIGHT!!! cuz, my fam is over so idk if my sisters will let me type up chapter 8 cuz they mgiht make me clear my mess of a room. (its really bad. you guys r lucky u dont have 2 see it) also, idk what's gonna happen in the next chapter. i'm still thinkin of it. if u guys got any ideas, that b cool if u told me. that way it won't take me so long 2 post the next chapter. Anyway, i hope u enjoyed it and plz R&R if you'd like. **

**~~~Taylor**


	8. First Kiss Meltdown

**Hello again, everyone! Since i was being a bug meanie and didn't post nothing for a whole week, I'm posting another chapter! I just want to make everything clear right now, this week at my school, their is a BIG test happening, so please understand that I might not be able to post anything for the next few days. I'm gonna have to study and stuff, so i might not have the time to write a new chapter. I've figured it out! this story is gonna be longer then the first one! it's gonna be around 11 chapters. Maybe 12. idk. but i know it's around that area. Anyway, this chapter is all about Vince and Gretchen. Sure, their's SOME TJ/Spin stuff, but only a little. this chapter is mostly about Vince and Gretch. Remember that. Also, sorry i made Vince a little OOC, but i couldn't help it. I wanted him to be really freaked about what happened, so i had to make him act like that. Wow, one more thing, this chapter is only 1,809 words! (not including author's notes) so its kinda another short chapy. anyway, Enjoy! ^-^**

**i dont own recess. Pual and Joe do. **

_Chapter Eight - First Kiss Meltdown_

_TJ's POV_

_January 2nd__, Friday . . ._

I didn't know what Vince wanted. To tell you the truth, I hadn't really talked to Vince in about two weeks. Maybe three weeks? So, it was kind of a shock when he called me this morning asking to meet up at the park.

I was sitting on one of the park benches by the basketball courts when I saw Vince running up to me. I stood up to greet him, but he grabbed me by the arm and dragged me behind a tree.

"I'm freaking out, Teej! Freaking out!" He shouted at me in a whisper. I stared at her quizzically, "About what, man?" I asked him.

He took a breath, "Something . . . Happened." he stated. I stared at him again, "What happened?" I asked.

He bit his lip, "Okay. Don't laugh, Teej. But, what happened . . ." he paused, "it just freaked me out. That's why I haven't called you or anything."

"What happened?" I asked again.

He took a breath, "Gretchen kissed me."

I felt like my eyes could bug out of my head like in those old time cartoons. "Dude!" I shouted.

"Shh! don't shout it, Teej!" he stated. My mouth went agape, "Dude, why didn't you tell me right after?! This is big! I thought _you_ would be the one to kiss _her_! Not the other way around!"

His face started to turn bright red, "Y-yeah. Me too. It took me as a surprise when she did it."

"Well, come on. Tell me what happened!" I urged him. He bit his lip,

"Well, I asked Gretch to the movies, like you said. She said yes, which I wasn't expecting. We went to see _Seven Pounds _and, weird thing; we saw Mikey and Annie there. We saw the movie, and I walked her home. I walked up to the front door with her, said goodnight and I started to walk away, when Gretch called after me, I turned around and she just kissed me! Then she said goodnight and went inside! I don't really know what to do about this! I mean, I've kissed other girls before, but never Gretchen! I don't know what to do now, Teej! Is she me friend, or my girlfriend? How do I talk to her now? Is it gonna be weird when we see each other?" he babbled on.

I gripped him by the shoulders and started the shake him back and fourth. "Dude! Clam down! First off, you need to talk to Gretch! Ask her to officially become your girlfriend, so you don't have to worry about all this! Second off, why tell me all this? Why not ask Gus? He's the only one in a relationship."

Vince looked at me quizzically, "Yeah, but, you're the only other person in the group who has a crush on someone else in the group. I thought I should ask you since you have experience in this field."

"Who do I have a crush on in the group who I've kissed?" I asked him confused.

"SPINELLI!" He shouted.

I felt my face go hot and I stared shaking my head, "N-no! Sure, I've kissed Spinelli, but that doesn't mean I like her! We only kissed cuz you guys made us! It was a stupid experiment that wasn't even accurate since I didn't tell the truth!"

I felt my face turn hotter. I said too much.

Vince took a step back and stared at me, eyebrow raised, "You," he paused. A grin spread on him face, "You liked it? You liked kissing Spinelli?" he asked.

I gulped and started to look around at everything other then Vince, "Um, well, I, um," I couldn't think on a response.

He stepped backwards and covered his mouth, although I could still hear him laughing, "I knew it! I knew you liked her! You liked kissing her! You enjoyed it! Oh, man! This is big!" he controlled his laugh and looked at me, "You gotta tell her!" he said.

"W-what?! No! Vince that was a long time ago! It doesn't mean I still like her!" I argued.

He made his hand into a fist and started to bite it, a smile still on his face, "Oh my God, you like her! You like her! You like her!"

I shot him a death glare and started to walk away, "I don't need to take this, LaSalle! Good luck with Gretchen!" I called to him.

I heard Vince ran after me, "Okay! Okay, I'll stop!" he told me, grabbing my arm. I felt my face still hot, but I ignored it. "It's okay man. Just remember, it's all in the past. I don't want you bring that stuff up again. Right now, this is about you and Gretchen." I explained to him.

He nodded, obviously he still needed help with the whole Gretchen thing and he didn't want me to leave while he was still confused.

"Okay, first things first. You need to talk to Gretchen." I said calmly.

"But, I-"

"Ah!" I interrupted him.

"But!"

"Nope!"

"But, what if-"

"Nanananananana! No! Shut your mouth and stop asking 'what if's'! It's only Gretchen! Calm yourself and just talk to her, man! It's simple. I was able to talk to Spinelli normally after the experiment. So you should be able to talk to Gretchen after your kiss. Do. You. Understand. Me.?" I asked the last part slowly.

Vince sighed, "Loud and clear."

I smiled proudly, "Good. Now, I'll walk you to Gretchen's house, and you talk to her."

"Wait! Now?!" Vince asked.

I nodded, "Duh! When will there be a better time? If you want, I'll stay for support. Or I could just leave after you get to her house."

Vince rolled his eyes and shrugged his shoulders, "I don't know what we ever did with you, man. You're so demanding."

I chuckled, "I guess I'm a natural born leader! Now, come on! No time like the present, as they say!" I told him, grabbing him by the arm and pulling him out of the park.

_Gretchen's house . . ._

I never thought Vince, of all people, would be scared of a girl. Boy, was I wrong. Once we were in front of Gretchen's house, he completely froze and refused to move. I had to push him up the walkway.

I rung the doorbell for him and started to walk down the walkway when Vince grabbed my arm, "Dude! Where are you going?!" he asked me.

"Away. You need to do this on your own!" I told him.

"No way! You gotta stay! I can't think of what to say! I need your help!" he pleaded.

I don't think I've ever seen Vince like that. He's normally calm, cool, collected. Now, he's freaking out worse then the Ashley's when Spinelli dropped that stink bomb in there club house in the fourth grade.

Before I could answer the front door swung open and an older woman, probably in her early forties, with auburn hair and glasses stood in the doorway.

"Oh, um, hi Mrs. Grundler. Is Gretchen home?" I asked for Vince. She nodded, "Yes. She's in the garage." she told us.

Vince and I nodded our heads in unison and Mrs. Grundler shut the door. I pushed Vince across the lawn and up to the closed garage door. I knocked about three times on it and the door began to open.

All around the garage where metal parts and tools. Designs hung on the wall on a bulletin board; in the corner was a box of metal parts that shined against the sun light entering the room. In the center of the room was a gray car hanging in the air. The car was dented, dirty, and two of the four doors were missing. The window shield was cracked and a yellowish color.

I could see two legs coming from under the car.

"Gretchen?" I called.

"Yeah! One minute!" I heard her call back. I looked over at Vince. He looked like he was about to die. I flicked the back of his ear and he snapped out of it, "Hey!" he said.

"Wake up, dude." I whispered. Gretchen rolled out from under the car and stood up, wiping her grease covered hands on a rag.

"I didn't know you were a mechanic." I chuckled. "Ha ha. Very funny Teej. This is my next project. I've been a little bored lately, so I'm building a brand new car from scratch." just as she said that, a bumper fell off. "Yeah, um, it's not done yet. It'll be better once I'm done." she continued.

I laughed, "Ha! Ha, that's funny. Hey, Gretch, Vince, here, needs to talk with you. So, I'm gonna go, and Vince," I looked at Vince, "talk to Gretchen." I told him.

I walked away and quickly hid behind a bush to make sure Vince didn't screw up.

"What did you need to talk about, Vince?" Gretchen asked him.

Vince opened his mouth to say something, then closed it, then opened it again, "Um," he started.

I smacked my forehead. How could he act like this?! It's like that kiss messed up his brain and he ain't Vince anymore!

I quickly looked around and picked up a small rock. I threw it at Vince's head.

"Ow!" he said, rubbing the back of his head. He looked in my direction and I mouthed the words '_ask her to be your girlfriend!'_

He bit his lip and looked back at Gretchen, "Gretch, would you like to be . . . My . . ." he paused.

He was getting nowhere.

I looked at Gretchen and she had a small grin on her face, "This is kinda funny. The way you're talking, I mean. I've seen you ask other girls to be your girlfriend, but you never were like this." she stated.

Wow. She's really smart to figure that one out.

"Um, well," Vince started.

Gretchen chuckled, "I'd like that. Being you're girlfriend, I mean. That is what you're asking, right?"

Vince's face turned the shade of pink and nodded his head. It was really funny to watch, believe me.

"Yeah. That's what I'm asking." he made clear. I smiled to myself. A Job well done. I quickly stood up and made my way home, leaving the new couple alone.

_To be continued . . ._

**Yay! it's done. I know, i know, that was soooooooooo stupid! XD lol jk jk. yeah, i suck at writing about guys going all tounge tied and stuff. anytime i do write about them acting like that, i start laughing. sorry. Also, i was wondering . . . since i won't be posting another chapy for a few days, (maybe not until Saturday) if u guys wanna tell me what you wanna read about in the next chapter, i could put it in there. if u want so TJ/Spin stuff, some breakdowns, a fight, anything. I'll try and put it in. Just tell me about it in a review or a message, ok? awsome. well, i hope you enjoyed the chapter, R&R if u want 2 and have an awsome week!!!!!! **

**~~~Taylor**


	9. An Important Announcement

**I'm baaaack! Hello again everybody! ^-^ How have u been? lol, enough with the small talk, let's get down with the story. I had a fun time writing with chapter. it was kinda sad at the beginning but was funny at the end! Yay!!! Anyway, enjoy this chapter!!! ^-^**

_Chapter Nine: An Important Announcement_

_Spinelli's POV_

_January 19, Monday. . ._

Something weird was going on. I could feel it in the air. Any time Vince and Gretchen were in the same room, it would either get awkward or tense. I knew TJ knew what was going on and I think Mikey and Annie knew too. But, Gus, Chipy and I where left in the dark.

I was stuck in study hall for fifth period. Right before lunch. Luckily, TJ had that class with me so I wasn't completely alone. The downside was, Ashley A. and Lawson were in that class too. They sat at one side of the room while TJ and I sat at the other. Our teacher, Miss Hooker, left the room to make some copies for her next class and left us to "be responsible and to remain seated until the bell rings". Although, she knew as well as we did that that wasn't gonna happen.

"Finally. The Hooker is gone." I said, leaning back in my desk. TJ turned in his seat, and nodded his head, "I wonder what Hooker's first name is."

I shrugged, "I don't know. Dinky Hooker, maybe?"

TJ chuckled, "Yeah that might be it."

I was about to chuckle as well, but the piercing sound of a high pitched laugh came from across the room.

"Arrgh. Could that slut laugh any louder?!" I murmured. TJ nodded it agreement, "You can say that again. Maybe she's just laughing so everyone would _think_ someone said something funny when, in reality, nothing funny was said."

I rolled my eyes, and started to sketch in sketchbook. I was so infatuated with that picture I drew after the trial, I couldn't stop. I decided that this would be the picture for the contest, that is, if I could get it done first.

TJ stared as my hand glided across the paper, editing the picture in every aspect. I stayed away from their faces though. I still couldn't find them. Three months and you'd think you'd find two faces that were madly in love with each other! But, no. Not me. I had to think and think and think some more and _still_ not find their damn faces!

Before I knew it, the tip of my pencil broke and I cursed under my breath. I stood up, "I gotta go sharpen this. Be right back." I quickly told TJ.

He nodded, "Hey, can I look at your sketches while you're up?" he asked, picking up the book.

I nodded, "Sure. Go right ahead."

I walked across the room over to the pencil sharpener (you had to sharpen it by hand and it made a really loud noise. It could get annoying.)

As I was sharpening I could see out of the corner of my eye, Lawson standing up and walking up to me.

He leaned on the wall the sharpener was screwed into and shot me a smile that was super gross. His teeth were slightly yellow, crooked (I see he never got braces), and I think he might have been growing a mustache, although it looked like it was half shaven and half colored on.

"Hey Spinelli." he said, his voice raspy and deep. _Gross_, I thought,

"What do you want freak?" I asked, pulling my pencil out to check the tip. Damn, still not sharpened!

"I was just thinking, since it's not official, the thing between Ashley A. and me, why don't you and I go to the fair this weekend? I heard about this rumor, if you kiss on the very top of the Farris wheel, you'll be together forever. Doesn't that sound like a great place to make-out?" He asked, pulling his hat off, running a hand through his messy and rats nest of hair and placing his hat back on.

I stuck out my tongue in disgust, "I'd rather eat dirt then make-out with you."

He chuckled, "Ha-ha. Funny Spinelli. Just admit it. You're madly in love with me. Go ahead. Every girl in the school is. Although, if you happen to be one of them, I would put it in consideration of you becoming my girlfriend for a while. What do you say?"

I rolled my eyes. _Grosser! _I thought. I pulled the pencil out of the sharpener. Thank God, it had a perfect tip. I turned around and my eyes landed on TJ, intoxicated with all my drawing in the book to notice Lawson talking with me.

I laughed a little, and then turned my head to face Lawson, "Save that offer for a girl who _does _like you. You're just wasting your breath telling me this when you could be telling Ashley A or some other girl who likes you. Although, I highly doubt anyone other then Ashley A likes you. You're just too full of yourself." I told him.

Anger struck his face and I grinned evilly. I turned on my heal and started to walk back to my seat.

Before I knew it, my back started to sting, then a sharp pain shot through my entire body and I fell to the floor, breathing heavily and my back felt like it was on fire.

"SPINELLI!" TJ shouted, jolting up from his desk and running over to where I was knelling on the floor.

Everyone in the class started laughing, "Oh wow! The toughest tomboy of 3rd street is on the floor after just a kick in the back?! Wow, you lost your touch Spinelli! Or, maybe now you should be known as _Ashley S._!" Ashley A. laughed, walking up behind Lawson.

"Spin . . .?" TJ mumbled to me, looking at me with concerned eyes.

I bit my lip and looked at him, "Do me a favor, Teej." I choked out. He nodded his head, "Kick his ass for me." I mumbled.

He chuckled slightly and nodded his head. TJ helped me up and led me over to my desk so I could sit down.

Once that was done, TJ turned around and walked up to Lawson.

Lawson was now talking with his friends at the other side of the room, laughing at how I've changed.

TJ walked up to them, tapped Lawson on the shoulder and once Lawson turned his head, TJ slammed his fist against Lawson's face and Lawson went flying off the desk he was sitting on and onto the floor.

"Don't ever do that to Spinelli, Lawson, if you know what's good for you! Remember, Spinelli doesn't have just me on her team, but Vince, Mikey, Gus, Chipy, Gretchen and Annie plus everyone they know! And that's a lot!" TJ informed him.

I stood up slowly and walked over to the other side of the room and stood next to TJ, and smug grin of my face.

Lawson gripped his chin and stared up at us in shock. Before he could even get a word in, the ball rang and everyone started to run out of the class room.

TJ grabbed my backpack and sketchbook for me and his own things and we walked out of the class room. We took a seat at our normal table in the cafeteria, the very back corner of the cafeteria by a big window that looked out onto the street, and we took a seat on either side of the table.

Soon, everyone started to pile into the cafeteria. The next one to take a seat at the table was Gus, who had brought his lunch in a metal lunch box, who took a seat next to TJ across from me. Then Mikey and Annie took a seat next to me with some cafeteria food that looked slightly decent, if you could call a big tray of mush that was a green and pinkish color decent.

Then Vince and Gretchen made their way to the table, both of them with bagged lunches and they took a seat across from each other.

Everyone talked about random things. TJ and I didn't mention what happened in 5th period, that is, until Mikey turned around in his seat and when he turned back, his hand grazed my back and I flinched.

"What's wrong Spin?" Vince asked, noticing my flinch. I looked at TJ and he bit his lip.

"Lawson kicked me in the back last period and it still kind of hurts. There isn't anything to worry about. TJ already punched him since I was in too much pain to do it myself. But, trust me, after school, I'm gonna show him I'm still the same tomboy who struck fear into kid's faces." I explained quickly.

"What?!" Annie said quickly, jumping out of her seat and taking a seat on the other side of me. "Are you okay, Spinelli?!" she asked. I half smiled and nodded to her.

Annie was sort of like a motherly figure in all of our lives. Around other people, she was this shy little timid girl who was only ever close to Mikey. But, when she was around all of us, she talked more, she could even fight if she wanted and she was a little worrisome. She kind of reminded me of my mom, that is, if my mom was still around to worry…

"Fine Annie. Just fine. My back still hurts, but just a little now. You don't have to worry. Just get back to your lunch." I assured her.

She sighed and nodded her head, her face still looking worried. I looked around the table and now everyone seemed concerned. "Spin, I didn't think your back would still hurt." Gus said, taking a sip of milk.

I shrugged my shoulders, "Well, it does. I mean, some people who get hit with a lamp in the back could possibility snap back and not feel too much pain after about a month, but for some reason, most of the glass pieces were lodged _inside _of my back, so I had to have surgery to get them removed, so my back still hurts now and then." I explained.

"Damn," I heard Vince mumble.

"H-Hey! Let's not make that little news get us down! I'm sure someone here has some good/happy news or something! Come on, speak up!" I shouted at them, trying my best to get my best friends in the world happy again.

"Well," Gretchen started. Everyone turned their head to her. "There was something I, well," she paused again, this time she looked at Vince.

"Something _we_ needed to tell you guys." Vince finished for her.

It got quiet again. Then, Gretchen finally said "Vince and I have started dating."

Gus started to choke on the sandwich he just took a bite of. I stared around the table. Mikey, Annie and TJ weren't surprised at all. Did they already know? Was it only me and Gus who were extremely shocked?

"Wait! Was this the guy you knew had a crush on you?" I asked.

"Y-You knew?!" Vince asked Gretchen. She nodded, "It's not that hard to figure out. Only a complete idiot wouldn't be able to figure it out." she explained.

"Gee, thanks Gretch. That means a lot." TJ mumbled.

"You knew, Teej?" I asked him. He nodded, "Yeah. And it took me three months to figure it out too."

"Oh, sorry Teej. No offense." Gretchen said quickly.

He half smiled, "S'okay."

"Wow, so now there are two couples in out group now." I made clear, pulling at a lose strand of hair in my face.

"Nope. Three!" Annie smiled at me. "Three? You mean . . .?" I started.

"That's right! Mikey and I started dating over the winter holiday! Isn't that great?!" Annie asked a bright smile on her face.

"I knew it! You guys have been acting weird!" Gus said, snapping his fingers.

"Did you guys happen to hook up after going to see a movie the day school let out for holiday break?" I asked them.

They nodded their heads. "Then you better thank me, cuz I was the one who told Mikey to ask you to the movies!" I informed them.

"Really? When'd you tell him that?" TJ asked. "After school. I walked into the theatre and Mikey was there and we talked. I asked about how he felt about Annie, and then I told him to ask you to the movies after he told me his feelings." I explained, leaving out some of the other things that went down, as in, Mikey asking me about my feelings for TJ.

"Ah." TJ said, nodding his head.

"But, Vince, Gretch, are you guys gonna keep your relationship on the D.L? Or are you going to tell everyone? 'Cause, you know, all the girls in school are practically in love with Vince. He gets a confession almost every day." Gus asked.

This I wanted to know the answer to. All the sporty girls loved Vince and confessed to him all the time. And Gretchen was the Beyoncé Knowles of the geeky boys in our school. If they really wanted to be a real couple, they would have to get the people who are in love with them to stop loving them and move on since they are seeing each other.

Vince and Gretchen nodded their heads, "Well, I can just talked to the guys in the Science club but, Vince-" Gretchen was interrupted by Vince jumping up from his seat and climbing onto the table.

"Vince! What the hell are you doing?!" TJ asked, standing up in his seat.

"Attention everybody! May I have your attention please?" Vince shouted across the cafeteria.

He wasn't doing what I thought he was doing, was he? I thought to myself.

Everyone in the cafeteria stopped what they were doing and turned to look at Vince.

"Okay, well, I'm sure you all know I'm single, right? Well, all of that has changed. I officially have a girlfriend, and her name is," Vince paused and looked down at Gretchen. She looked slightly shocked at what he was doing but nodded her head.

He smiled and looked back at everyone in the cafeteria, "My girlfriend is Gretchen Grundler!" He shouted.

You could hear everyone start to whisper and some girls moaned out of sadness that Vince was officially off the market.

Vince stepped down from the table and just then the bell rang and everyone started to leave the cafeteria.

"That was wise of you LaSalle." I told Vince as I walked to the doors.

"Thanks Spin." He smiled and I noticed he had intertwined his hand with Gretchen's. I smiled to myself. They must have been really happy together. It must have been nice to have someone at your side, ready to take your hand when you needed it.

"Hey, Spin," TJ said, putting his arm around my shoulder and leading me down the hall, "What do you say you and me go hang at the park after school? You know, get your mind off Lawson and his stupid ass followers. What do you say? You in?" he asked, a smile on his face.

I half smiled, "Sure. Count me in." I told him.

He nodded his head and everyone started to go their separate ways to their next class. TJ took his arm back and he continued going down the hall, while I made a left and walked to my Art class, that I was fortunate enough to have Annie and Gus there with me.

_To be continued . . ._

**Did you like it??? Okay, let me answer one question I know you're wondering from reading that chapter, did Spinelli's mom die?? No, she didnt. she's still in a coma so her mother is there for her right now, that's what she meant. OK? cooleo. anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter and please review and let me know what u think! I love reading ur awsome reviews and i really wanna know what the readers think and would like to see! anyway, thanks 4 reading and ttyl!!! bye!**

**~~~Taylor**


	10. Realization on Valentines Day

**Yaya! an update! i feel so happy! i worked really hard on this chapter! it took me 4 days 2 write it!!!! it never takes me that long to write a chapter, EVER!!!! anyway, this chapter has TJ/Spin action so enjoy!!! also, this is the LONGEST chapter out of all the chapters! 3,494 words! (not including authors notes) **

**i do not own recess. Paul and Joe do. I also do not own the park they go to or any of the rides. **

_Chapter Ten: Realization on Valentines Day_

_Spinelli's POV_

_February 14__th__, Saturday . . . _

I stared down evilly at the small golden box sitting on my desk.

"It's really easy Spinelli. Just walk up to him and ask if he'll take it." Annie, who was sitting on my bed, said to me.

"Yeah. It's not like he'll say no. Even if he doesn't want it, he'll take it because he's nice like that." Chipy said, while looking at my old sketchbooks.

"Why the hell should I give him this anyway?! We ain't going out!" I shot back.

Gretchen sighed, "Spinelli, you might not be a couple but you're his best friend. His _first_

Best friend. He'll be thrilled to get some chocolates from you."

I bit my lip, "Why are you guys here, anyways?! All three of you have boyfriends! Shouldn't you be out with them?!" I asked.

"Mikey is taking me to dinner tonight at seven at this fancy French restaurant." Annie smiled, her cheeks becoming rosy.

"Gus is taking me to the movies." Chipy chimed in.

"And Vince is taking me to the planetarium once it gets dark!" Gretchen giggled.

Wow. They all seem so happy. I mean, Gretchen even giggled like a school girl! Boyfriends really do change a girl.

Just then, a knock at my door made me jump, "Spinelli? You in there?" the voice shouted.

"It's TJ! It's TJ!" Annie squealed in a whisper.

"Shut up! Everyone shut up!" I whispered, walking over to the door. I opened it a crack so TJ could see me, but not everyone in the room.

"Yeah Teej?" I asked.

He looked slightly flushed and he rubbed the back of his neck, "Look Spin, I know this'll seem odd since it's Valentines Day, but, um," he held out too small tickets, "My dad surprised me with these tickets for the amusement park tonight, and since everyone has a date tonight, I was wondering if you would go. With me, I mean. Not a date or anything! Just, two friends going to the amusement park on the night that happens to be Valentines Day."

I bit my lip and looked back at the girls.

They mouthed the words _Go! Say yes!_

I turned back to TJ and took a ticket out of his hand, "Sure. That sound's fun."

He smiled and nodded his head, his cheeks still flushed, "Cool. Thanks Spin."

I nodded my head and closed the door. I looked around at my friends, and before they could get a word in, I barked in, "I know you guys heard what he said! It is _not_ a date! It's just two friends going to the amusement park on the night that happens to be Valentines Day! Nothing more! It is _not_ a date!"

Annie smiled at me, "What are you gonna wear?"

"Why should I wonder that when it isn't a date?!" I asked, walking back over to my desk. "You should wear something pink! Maybe a skirt or curl your hair!" Chipy chimed in.

"No way! I will never wear anything pink and I will never curl my hair!" I shouted at Chipy.

"But a few of your clothes are pink," Gretchen said, peeking into my closet.

I quickly walked over and closed the closet door. "Those are exceptions! I actually like those clothes. They might be pink, but they aren't frilly. They have skulls, and chains and half the shirt is black as well!" I argued.

Annie stood up, "Okay okay fine. We won't help you get ready for tonight. Let's go, guys. We'll leave Spinelli here to freak out by herself."

Gretchen and Chipy laughed slightly and walk out of the room, leaving me standing there, starting to freak out.

_6:00 PM, that night . . ._

I walked downstairs, ready to go to the amusement park. I had decided to wear my favorite pair of blue jeans that had about five rips in it, and writing all over. A black off-the-shoulders top with a skull on it and a purple tank top under it.

TJ was sitting on the floor with Pete and Emily playing, what looked like, blocks.

"Ready to go?" I asked him. He looked up and nodded, "Yeah. My dad is gonna give us a ride." he stood up and walked into the other room.

He came back out with his father following behind him. "Okay, now we're ready." he said, leading me out the door.

We stepped into the car and Mr. Detweiler started to pull out of the driveway and up the street.

_At the amusement park . . ._

TJ and I raced into the park to the first ride the gang use to go on all the time when we were little: The Hurricane Coaster.

The line was short, and we took a seat at the very front. "This is gonna be so sweet!" I smiled, pulling the safety bar down once TJ took his seat.

"I know right! This ride is only about a minute, but we would always spend hours going on this ride!" TJ agreed. "I know! How long has it been since the gang's been here?" I asked, as the ride engineer walked over to the stand that controls the ride.

TJ bit his lip in thought, "Hmm, I think we haven't been here since the summer. We were gonna go in October, 'cause they open the park for Halloween, but with everything that happened," TJ paused.

I nodded my head, "its okay, Teej. It's all a thing of the past." just as I said that, the ride started to making a clinking noise and it started to go up the tracks.

Before we knew it, the ride fell down the tracks and the wind blew rapidly in our faces as we turned turns and went upside down a few times. The whole time TJ and I were either screaming our heads off or laughing. Whichever seemed more fun at that time.

Once the ride came to a stop, I turned to TJ, a huge grin on my face, and unable to hold in my laughter, "That was so awesome!" I laughed out as we walked off the ride.

"I know! But, Spin, they put in a lot of new ride I bet you'll think are much cooler! Come on, I'll show you!" He grabbed my hand, which made my stomach do some kind of flip flop, and he pulled me through the park, taking me on new ride after new ride.

The first one he took me on was one called The Silver Twister. It wasn't for kids but it seemed like it. It wasn't that high up, and it was sort of like the Superman ride at Six Flags, only shorter and not as fast. You could sit eight people per ride, and it took you up and down and rocked back and fourth as it did it.

"Yeah, that wasn't so scary. Bad first example." TJ told me as we stepped off the ride. "It's okay. It was fun." I told him.

So, for the next two hours, TJ showed me around the park, taking me on one new ride after another. A lot of them really were fun and a little scary too. One ride was about two minutes, but it was only that long because after it was all done, it did everything it just did, only backwards. That was really cool.

"Hey, Spin, you hungry?" TJ asked me after walking around. I shrugged, "How can I be hungry when there are so many fun rides I'm dying to go on?" I asked him. But, like on cue, my stomach started to growl. I thought TJ wouldn't hear it because of all the noise going on around us, but he shot me a look and said, "Okay. One more ride, then we go get some food. Deal?"

I rolled my eyes, "Okay, fine. But, who ever loses has to pay!" I shot back.

"In what? A race? It's impossible to race in this crowd."

"No. Um," I looked around at all the rides. Their had to be some ride we could use in our little game.

"Aha! That one!" I grabbed TJ and pulled him through the crowd over to a small staircase.

"The alligator ride?" TJ mused, staring at the ride on the other side of the stairs.

"That's right. Who ever gets more wet loses." I told him. "But, people go on this ride to _get wet_. It would be weird to get off the ride not wet." he told me. "So? Or, are you chicken?" I asked with a sly grin.

"I am not! Just, get on the line!" he said, leading me over to the back of the line. As we waited, I looked over that ride. It was in the middle of a somewhat big pond. The staircase we were on was also a bridge that the ride goes under, and it also pours out a bunch of water if you get under it just right. The ride had about eight seats, but two could go in them; that's what a lot of the couples were doing. And it looked like the wheel could control weather you steered farther out or closer in.

I turned to TJ, "Also, you have to act like this isn't a bet. Go crazy, okay?! Act like you would anytime riding this, okay?!" I told him. He nodded, "I figured that, Spin. Don't worry. I always play fair!" he assured me.

We were now right about to get on the ride. As the man unhooked the chain so the next group could get on, a couple that was arguing with each other was getting off. The girl was soaking wet, just like the boy.

I laughed, "I guess they aren't having a happy Valentines Day." TJ nodded in agreement as we both stepped into a booth.

"Good luck Spin. Considering this is your first time riding this ride." TJ called to me. He took the booth right in front of me. I looked at me and gave him a smug look, "We'll see, Detweiler! I'm gonna win! Watch and see!"

The small rim of the small dock we were just on started to spin and everyone started to turn the wheel and their alligator started to spin in and out. Even though I was determined to win, since I didn't want to spend thirty dollars on a ten dollar meal, I couldn't help but have a smile on my face and laugh every once in a while as I tried to figure out how to turn the wheel which way.

So far (which was about 30 seconds) things were going fairly well. Neither TJ nor I had gotten wet. I thought we'd have to do a tie breaker, until I looked down at the wheel and turned it the wrong way, just as I was going under the bridge. A huge gush of water fell on top of me and made some of my hair stick to my face.

I heard TJ laugh and I gripped the wheel. I'm pretty sure my luck ran out after the first time getting wet, because the next four times going under the bridge, I always got wet. Which, for a reason I don't know why, shocked me every time. TJ did get wet, but the water only grazed his arm. I lost hands down.

We stepped off the ride, the whole time, TJ laughing at me.

"Okay okay! I get it! I lost! You won! You laugh one more time and I'll drown you in the pond!" I threatened him. He stopped, but a smile was still on his face. As we walked over to the food court, I stared down at the damage the water did to my outfit. My pants were sticking to my legs, the same with my shirt.

We stopped completely once we saw the line for the food stand. "I am _not _standing in that line." I told him, staring at the line.

"Is it even a line?" TJ asked, looking around. I was wondering that myself. It looked like a bunch of people just standing around.

"Why don't we go on some more rides, then we'll come back when the line goes down?" I asked TJ, already looking around for another ride, mostly one that could dry off my outfit so I wouldn't get a cold.

TJ nodded, "yeah. Come on, I know a perfect ride to dry you off." he chuckled, pulling me through the crowd. "Wow, you must be a mind reader, Teej." I chuckled. He nodded, "That is one of my best qualities. Mind reading, I mean." he laughed, stepping onto a line. I stepped on line with him, looking up at the ride he was going to make me go on.

_TJ POV. . . _

I was taking Spinelli onto The Frisbee. It was the gang's favorite ride to go on, and I was sure it would get Spinelli dry.

We finally got to the front of the line and we walked onto the ride. Spinelli took a seat next to me and we pulled down the safety bar. "So, how does this ride go?" She asked, looking around at all the people taking seats.

"Well, it goes back and fourth and this circle thing spins in circles while it does that. It's really fun and it gets fast, so I'm sure you'll be dry once the ride is over." I explained. She nodded, and the ride started.

I know I should have been enjoying the ride that would make anyone dizzy, but I couldn't help look over at Spinelli every few seconds. I wanted to know if she was having a good time. I'd already been here a bazillion times and already been on all there rides ten times or more, so I didn't care if I was having fun or not. I was just wondering if Spinelli was.

Finally, the ride was over and the safety bars unlocked. "That was so awesome!" Spinelli stated, standing up.

"Glad you liked it. Once, we road that ride five times in a row! Gus was the only one who got sick!" I laughed, remembering that time. Spinelli laughed with me, "Yeah that does sound like Gus!"

We glanced at the food court line. Sadly, it was still as long as ever.

"Attention! Adventure Land will be closing in twenty minutes. I repeat Adventure Land will be closing in twenty minutes." a voice said over the intercom, interrupting the music that was playing.

"Do you really want to wait on that line?" Spinelli asked. I shook my head, "Nope. Let's just go on one more ride before the park closes. Which ride?" I asked her.

She looked around. "How about the bumper Cars? We haven't been on those yet." she said, pointing over to the bumper Cars by the arcade. I nodded, "yeah I love those!" I stated. We started to run through the crowd.

For such an old ride, the line sure was long. We were waiting for about ten minutes. During that time, Spinelli and I talked about random things. Most of them were about our plans once school was out. We both agreed to get the whole gang into going on a road trip across the U.S. to see all the big cities and we were sure our parents would go for it, since we were gonna say that we'd visit family on the way.

We finally got to the front of the line and Spinelli and I ran to a car. About ten other people got into the other cars and about 30 seconds later, the music started playing and the cars started to work again.

I rammed my car into everyone I could spot, and I couldn't stop laughing. I think that's some kind of spell that's put on people when they go to an amusement park: non stop smiling and laughing when you go on a ride.

I looked over at Spinelli. She was under the same spell. A smile was on her face from ear to ear and she was laughing up a storm.

Something came over me just them. That scene I was staring at, Spinelli just having the time of her life, laughing and smiling, it seem to give me this weird feeling. I kept my gaze locked on her, not realizing I was being hit every two seconds.

The ride finally came to a stop and I quickly got of the car and walked over to the exit. "That was so fun, wasn't it? I think that's the only time you can crash into people in a car and not get hurt or in trouble for it!" Spinelli laughed, walking up to me outside of the ride.

I nodded, "Yeah. Come on, let's go see if my dad's here." I told her. She nodded and we started to walk to the front gate. I saw Spinelli glance over near the food court, then she smiled, "Hey, Teej, I'll meet you there, okay? I'll be right back." she said, and before I could get a word in, she turned around and ran.

I sighed, and walked over to the gate next to the entrance. Dad told me he'd be parked right by the curb to pick us up at nine, and he still wasn't there.

It gave me time to think. What was up with me tonight? I should have been having fun. But, I was wondering if Spinelli was having fun. And, the only time it felt like I was having fun was when Spinelli was having fun. All night I'd been wondering about Spinelli! What was wrong with me? Was I sick? No, I don't think so. What was wrong with me?!

You know, now that I think about it, I've felt this way a lot before. When ever I was alone with Spinelli, I always had this strange feeling in the pit of my stomach. Like butterflies. Why was I so nervous when I was around Spinelli?

I think the only other time I was this nervous around Spinelli was that time in the fourth grade, when we were stuck doing the kissing experiment. I kept thinking, would I like it? Would I hate it? Would Spinelli like it or hate it? Would this change our friendship? Stuff like that. But, in the end, I did like it, although Spinelli didn't. But, I didn't care. I liked it. I liked kissing Spinelli. I felt our friendship was worth throwing away for just that one kiss. Even though it's a bad thought, I felt it and our friendship didn't end because of it.

But, what did that mean? I liked kissing Spinelli, and I liked going to the amusement park with just Spinelli on Valentines Day.

I stared out at all the cars, still trying to figure out this feeling I had that I didn't know the name of, when I felt a tap at my shoulder. I turned my head and Spinelli handed me a cup and a small golden box.

"The stand was open and the line was short. I got you a chocolate shake and I got you some chocolates since you don't have a girlfriend to get you some tonight. I got the same but some gummy bears instead of chocolate." she told me, taking a sip of her shake. "I did lose the bet, so I had to get you something to eat." she told me quickly.

I nodded, and opened the box and took a piece of chocolate out, "Thanks." I told her. "Your welcome." she said, her face slightly flushed.

Dad's car finally pulled up and we walked out of the park. "That was really fun! We gotta do this again sometime." Spinelli told me as she pulled her seatbelt on.

"I take it you kids had fun." My dad said, looking at us through the rearview mirror. I nodded and Spinelli started to explain what we did to my dad, who was really interested in what she was staying.

I was staring out the window, starting to fall asleep. Even though it was only around nine o'clock, I was tired. But, right before my eyes closed, I finally realized something I thought was never possible.

I was in love with my best friend, Spinelli.

_To be continued. . . _

**did u like it?!? did u did u did u did u???!??!!?!?!? lol. well, i hope you liked it!! idk when i'll post 11. now, i'll give u a small spoiler, ok? but, i won't tell u it now. here's the deal, i'll give u the spoiler, in a reply from a review for this story! but, u gotta ask 4 it too, ok! ok. thankies 2 everyone who's reading this! u rock!**

**~~~Taylor**


	11. A Mistake

**Yay! It's up! This is an important chapter! read and enjoy! i hope u like it! ^-^**

**i don't own Recess. Paul and Joe do. I don't own Avril Lavigne, Boys Like Girls, or any of the songs. **

_Chapter Eleven: A Mistake_

_Spinelli's POV . . ._

_Friday, March 20th__ . . . _

It was around eleven o'clock in the morning and we were getting ready to leave for the concert. I was talking with the gang, counting up the money they gave me so I could buy them t-shirts, CD's, or autographs. They wrote down what they wanted and, if it was clothing they wanted, their shirt sizes too.

"Have fun. Don't get separated and get a bunch of pictures!" Annie informed me. I nodded, "I know, I know."

Pete and Emily ran up to me and gave me a hug goodbye, "Aw, guys, don't worry. I'll be back tonight. So will TJ." I assured them. TJ walked up to us, "Everything is set to go. I got the tickets, money for food and gas, and my cell phone and camera. You ready?" he asked me.

I nodded. "Tickets check. Money and list check. Camera, check. Cell phone, check. I'm ready."

We said our goodbyes to everyone and started off to Detroit.

We listened to different CD's on the way. The first Avril Lavigne CD, a few Linkin Park CD's, Green Day, Sum41, and then the radio.

"So, you think it'll be packed?" TJ asked me, glancing at me. I nodded, "Duh! That's why we gotta get all the stuff the guys want _before_ the concert and _before_ everyone clears everything they got out." I explained.

"By the way, are you changing when you get there? I heard people, even guys, dress up like Avril at her concerts. I looked on line and they mostly dress up the way Avril dressed up in her music video for that song, um," he paused.

"_Girlfriend_." I told him. He nodded, "Yeah, that song."

I shook my head, "No way. I would never dress up like that. Not even for Avril Lavigne. That's why I just going in blue jeans and an Abbey Dawn t-shirt with sneakers. I don't care what everyone else is wearing. I thought you knew me better then that, TJ."

He chuckled, "I know, I know. Sorry."

I smiled and rolled my eyes, and turned up the radio as we turned onto the high way.

_TJ's POV. . . _

We got to the concert at around four, one hour before the concert started. I parked my dad's car far off in the lot. It was a long walk, but there was no other parking spot that was closer.

"Come on! They're probably are already halfway cleaned out!" Spinelli called as she ran up to the arena. I ran up after her and we stood in line, waiting to give the man our tickets. "So, you think any one in front of us is gonna have those signs?" I asked her, pointing to a group of people inside who were all holding a sign.

Spinelli made a grossed out face, "Ew, I _hate_ those types of people. They should really think of other people, like the people behind them who can't see because of there stupid signs. But," Spinelli smiled a toothy smile and held up her ticket, "We got front row seats! Center too. We won't have to worry about people holding up sings in front of us!"

I chuckled, "We might be in the front row, but their's still the pit in front of us. Someone could have a sign in there." I informed her. Spinelli's shoulders fell a little, "Thanks Teej. You ruined my good mood."

I laughed, "Oh, come on Spin! I'm sure no one will have a sign in the pit! It'll be too crowded."

She chuckled a little and handed the man her ticket. He checked her bag then let her move on. I did the same. Once inside, Spinelli took out the list of things the guys asked us to get and we made our way to one of the booths that weren't _too_ crowded.

It took forever to get everything. No matter which booth we were at, at least fifty people were crowded around it. But, we were finally able to get everything.

"That was lucky." Spinelli said, placing the change into her pocket. I nodded, "You can say that again. They were almost out of t-shirts. Come on. Let's get to our seats. We only have ten minutes before the concert starts." I told her, putting some of the things in my bag. We made our way to the doors and down the steps to the front.

A man who worked there stopped us and told us where to go exactly; we thanked him and made our way to the front. We made our way past a bunch of people, many of them either dressed up as Avril, holding signs in there hands, or both, causing Spinelli and I to share a laugh once we got to our seats.

"Wow, right in front, very center! I never imaged these would be the seats I'd get for my first concert! I always thought I'd be stuck with nose-bleed seats on the lawn or something!" Spinelli said is awe, staring around the room. She started to take pictures of the stage with her digital camera.

"You don't wanna waste space in the camera, do you?" I asked her. She shook her head, "No. I'm just checking out the zoom. Look! I got a perfect picture of drums and they aren't fuzzy at all! I gotta remember to thank your parents for getting me this!" Spinelli said, showing me the picture.

"Wow, you gotta love modern technology." I said, taking the camera out of her hands. Just then, the lights started to dim, and the opening act came on.

"Who was the opening act again?" Spinelli asked me over the roar of the crowd. I handed her back her camera and looked around, "I think its Boys Like Girls." I told her. She looked around, and also saw the signs and t-shirts with their band name on them.

We both chuckled a little for not realizing it before, and then stood up to watch Boys Like Girls perform.

They played a lot of there hit songs, like _Hero/Heroine_, _The Great Escape_, _Five Minutes to Midnight_, and a lot more that I couldn't really name because most of them I couldn't really understand. The lead singer was screaming into the microphone I couldn't understand everything he was saying.

After about thirty minutes or more of playing or until once it got dark out, the lead singer, Martin Johnson, started to get the crowd pumped up for Avril Lavigne.

I could tell everyone was excited. More then I thought they would. Even Spinelli was excited more then I thought she'd be. She was shouting, jumping up and down some times and looking all around to see if she could spot Avril off stage.

It was kind of a funny sight to see. After Boys Like Girls left the stage, the lights lit it up and a few men came out and started to set everything up. They did it really quickly too, because after five minutes they left the stage and it started to dim again.

The crowd started to cheer and on the big TV screen on the stage started to digitally spray paint Avril's name. Even though it was just her name, and not her, Spinelli still took a picture of it. Anyone would. It was really cool.

The band started to play and the dancers came out, carrying flags and Avril appeared, coming out of the stage, and started to sing her song, _Girlfriend_. Even though I wasn't that big of a fan, I was having the time of my life and even singing along like everyone else in the audience, which shocked my since I'd only heard this song once on the radio a long time ago.

_Later on that night . . ._

_Spinelli's POV. . ._

The concert started out awesome. Her first song was _Girlfriend_, then she played _Complicated_, _My Happy Ending_, _I'm With You_, then they brought her piano out and she started playing my favorite song (don't tell anyone I told you that) _When You're Gone_. Then she played _Innocence_, then she took a seat and played _Don't Tell Me _acoustic version though. And a lot more of her new and old songs too, including _The Best Damn Thing_ and _Sk8er Boi_.

Her final song was her song _Girlfriend_, but the remix she did with Lil Mama. She thanked all of us for coming out, waved goodbye and went back under the stage, the same way she came in.

TJ and I stayed behind for a minute or two, to let all the other screaming fans stop screaming and start walking to the exit.

"That was so fun!" TJ told me as we walked up the steps to the exit. "I know! I really owe everyone for getting me the ticket." I said back, stumbling forward from the guy behind me bumping into me.

"Yeah. But, some people were really disturbing during the show." TJ said, glaring at the guy who pushed me. I chuckled, "Yeah. Like that guy who kept shouting _"I love you, Avril!"_ every time Avril paused when she was talking to the crowd."

TJ laughed with me, "Yeah! Did you see the look on Avril's face when he screamed that every two seconds! She looked a little freaked."

"I know right! I got of a picture of it too!" I told him, holding up my camera. He laughed, "Tender,"

I stared at him, and then felt my face turn hot. "What is it?" TJ asked me, as we finally got out of the arena and into the open. "Oh! It's just, um; I haven't heard you say your "catch phrase" in a while. It's kinda nice hearing you say it, that's all. Brings back old memories." I told him.

He looked a little red in the face, but he laughed, "Yeah it has been a while since I've said it."

"You should say it more often. Its fun hearing you say it." I told him as we walked past the crowd of people and out the gates to the parking lot.

He nodded, "Hmm, you're right. Plus, it'll make the group feel like the good old days of 3rd street."

"Right!" I yawned, "Now, let's get home. I'm tired."

TJ nodded in agreement, "Ditto. You can sleep on the way home; since we're gonna get stuck in traffic."

I nodded and we walked up the parking lot to the car.

_At Home . . ._

I felt someone shaking my shoulder and I rubbed my eyes, "What?" I moaned, looking around at my surroundings. I was sitting in the passenger's seat of Mr. Detweiler's car. I looked at the driver's seat and TJ was sitting there.

"We're home, Spin. Time to get up. You can sleep when you get upstairs." he told me softly. I nodded my head, "How long was I out?" I asked, unbuckling my seatbelt. "Well, we left the concert at nine, and it's almost two now. I'd say about five hours." he told me.

We stepped out of the car and walked up to the front door, "I can't believe it. It's already the day of the art contest." I told him as he searched for his house key. "I know. Did you finish your picture yet?" TJ asked.

I shook my head sadly, "No. I haven't gotten anywhere with it and I don't have time to draw another picture. I'll have to work on it minutes before I have to enter it. I really hope it does a little well."

"Don't worry Spin. You're a great artist! I'm sure you'll get the picture done before the contest." TJ told me, placing the key into the lock.

I nodded, "Thanks Teej. You really know what to say to make a girl feel better." I told him, stepping into the doorway. He nodded, "No problem."

It got quiet and, for some reason, I didn't more from my spot and neither did TJ. It was like one of those scenes in the movies, right before they kiss. But, TJ would never kiss me. Not out of free will, I mean.

I was about to move out of the way so TJ could get inside, but before I could move, TJ gently grabbed the sides of my face and pulled me closer to him, closing the gap between out lips.

I didn't really know what to do. I mean, I liked TJ, but I was sure he didn't like me!

TJ's hands slowly moved from the sides of my face, to my shoulders and then rested on the small of my back as the kiss deepened.

Why was I letting this happen?! If this was any other guy, I'd push him away before he even connected out lips together, then beat him to a pulp! Why wasn't I doing that with TJ?! Maybe I wasn't because TJ was my friend. Maybe I thought it was okay since we kissed before. But, we never kissed like this! This kiss was passionate and it would make any girly girl swoon if their boyfriend kissed them the same way TJ was kissing me!

The thing that shocked me the most was, I was kissing him back! I had dropped my bag at my feet and rested my hands behind his head.

I had to stop this! I couldn't kiss TJ! It just wasn't possible! Besides, what if Mr. or Mrs. Detweiler saw us?! They could have been waiting up for us and be watching right now!

I unhooked my hands from the back of his head and placed my trembling hands on his shoulders and pushed him back, breaking the kiss.

I stared at him, and he stared at me, our eyes both filled with shock. He took a step forward, "Spin . . ." he started quietly.

I stepped back, but he stepped forward again. What on Earth was going on?! Why was this happening?!

TJ took another step forward and I did what any girl in my situation would, even though TJ was my friend and I would never do this to him, I slapped him across the face.

He seemed even more shocked, and he gently touched the spot where my hand collided with his cheek.

I stepped back and took a step onto the staircase, "S-Sorry. I-I'm tired. I'm going to bed. Goodnight." I told him quickly and ran up the stairs to my room, leaving TJ standing there in the doorway, still shocked.

I ran into my room and shut and locked the door. This was all too crazy! TJ kissed me! I kissed him back! Then I slap him?! What's wrong with me?! I'm acting totally out of character! If this is what happens to you after a boy kisses you, I don't think I want a boyfriend!

But, why did I have this strange feeling that kissing TJ was right?

I shook my head and walked over to my bed. I removed my shoes and lied down. What was I going to do? I had to fix this otherwise our friendship was down the tube!

Just then, a light dinged in my head, the same light that happens when I get inspiration for my art, and it was the picture I was entering for the contest. It was done and I could see their faces!

I grabbed the picture off the desk and my box of colored pencils and started to draw down what I had seen. Maybe the picture would help the situation I was in with TJ. Or maybe it would just make it extremely worse!

_To be continued . . ._

**Did you like it?!!!? did u did u did u did u?!!?!? btw, i'm glad i knew what went down at the concert! i went to Avril's concert in Dallas, so I kinda modeled their concert trip after mind. (btw, the dude they r talking about who kept screaming "i love you Avril!" really happened at the concert I went to. it was funny.) so, did u like the kiss?!? do u have an idea of what will happen in the next chapter?? i hope so! I really hope my story is sparking your imagenation!!! That would make my day if it was! ^-^ anyway, R&R if u want and stay tooned cuz i'm planing on the next chapter to be the last!!! well, bye bye!!**

**~~~Taylor**


	12. What They Like

**Last chapter. Enjoy.**

**i don't own Recess. Paul and Joe do. I only own Annie, Pete and Emily.**

_Chapter Twelve: What They Like _

_TJ's POV . . ._

_Saturday, March 21__st__. . . . _

I was slouching in my chair at the table, letting my cereal get soggy. I couldn't believe I did that last night. Friends are not allowed to kiss other friends! That's in The Kids Unwritten Code of Honor! And, if it isn't it should be!

"TJ, you better eat that before it gets icky." Emily told me, looking at my cereal. I nodded, but I still wouldn't eat anything.

"So, TJ how was the concert?" My dad asked, clearing his throat. I shrugged, "It was fun. Crowded, Boys Like Girls were loud so it was kinda hard to understand them, and I could understand what Avril Lavigne was saying. We got everyone the things they asked for, and drove home. That's about it." I explained, completely leaving out the part about me shoving my tongue down Spinelli's throat.

"I'm glad you two had fun." my dad smiled, getting back to his paper.

"Oh, speaking of Spinelli, where is she? I thought since today is the big day she'd be up at the crack of dawn getting ready for the contest. Is she still asleep?" my mom asked, placing a plate of scrambled eggs in front of Pete.

"Mom, we didn't get home until around two. It's understandable that she'd sleep in." I told her before she walked up the stairs. "Wow, it took that long? Glad your father and I didn't wait up for you guys then. But, she still should get up and get ready." mom said, still walking over to the stairs.

I was about to get up and say I would do it myself, but, after what happened last night, I might be the last person Spinelli wants to see.

About five minutes later my mom came back down the stairs, holding a briefcase-like bag in her hand.

"What's that?" I asked.

"Spinelli isn't feeling too well. She says she has a bad headache and an upset stomach. She said she still wanted to enter the contest, and if we could bring her picture and enter it for her, she'd really appreciate it." my mom clearly lied.

It was easy to tell when she was lying too. She would try to sound upset if it was a sad or sick lie, but have a grin on her face and a slight chuckle in her voice.

"What's really going on?" I asked my mom. She smiled and placed her hands on her hips, "You can read me like an open book. Spinelli just said their was more important things she needed to attend to, but if we could enter her art in, that would be great." she explained.

I nodded. This contest was so important to Spinelli, I couldn't think of anything else that was more important. Since my mom wasn't lying anymore, I could tell Spinelli didn't tell my mom what was important either.

Finally, I took the spoon out of the bowl in front of me and started to eat my cercal.

---

_Spinelli's POV. . ._

I've always hated hospitals. Not because the food stinks or anything. Because hospitals are always surrounded by sadness. Sure, sometimes hospitals brought babies and stuff, but a lot of the time, hospitals are surrounded by sadness. Death, despair, anguish, despondency, misery, etc. etc.

Anyways, if you couldn't already tell, I was at the hospital. It was almost five o'clock. Five o'clock was the deadline for all entries and then the judging would begin while people walked around and looked at your art. I hope Mrs. Detweiler set up my drawings the way I wanted to set them up, so it seemed like a comic book strip and you could follow it to understand it better.

I left the house at around noon, when I was sure TJ left. Yeah, I know, I was being such a baby, not talking to TJ and avoiding him at all costs. And now, five hours later, I was sitting in a hospital room, staring at the floor.

A nurse walked in, "Well, if it isn't Miss Spinelli! Are you enjoying your visit with your mother?" she asked, checking my mother's IV. I looked up at her, "Yeah, I'm having a blast." I said sarcastically.

She giggled, "Well, remember, visiting hours are over at eight." and, with that, she walked out of the room. I watched her leave, and then turned back to my mom. I hadn't come to see her in a few months, now that I think about it. Mrs. Detweiler normally takes the twins during the day, so I don't need to take them, and I've been trying to avoid coming here ever since that stupid lawyer told me it was my fault my mom was in here.

I was glad the jury founded Evan guilty and he was sentenced to five to ten years in the state prison. I was happy, until my lawyer said that Evan could get a longer sentence if my mom dies; as in, he could be put back on trial for murder. That really didn't make me feel better.

I looked up at my mom's face. It had gotten better. Scars were gone; the only thing on her face was wrinkles. The doctors even took her off a respirator because she was getting better. They even said she might wake up soon.

I'm glad. My mom was getting better and coming home. We could go back to our house and maybe even talk Joey and Vito into moving back in with us. Heck, they could even bring their girlfriend's if they wanted to.

I stared at my mom. The whole time I was here, all I did was sit in the chair next to her bed and stare at the floor, my mind a blank. Should I just leave now and go to the art contest? There was no point in staying. It would make me seem crazy if I talked to her, knowing she wouldn't respond. I wonder what Pete and Emily do when they come here.

I stood up and grabbed my small backpack at my feet and walked to the door. I heard a faint coughing sound, a very light, small sound that made me stop right in the doorway.

"Ashley, dear?" I heard her say in a whisper. I turned around, not knowing why my eyes were burning.

"Mom?" I asked, looking at the bed. Her hand moved slightly and I walked forward to her quickly. "Mom," I repeated, staring at her in disbelief. This couldn't be happening! Mom just got taken off the respirator about four days ago! She couldn't be talking yet! Could she?

"Hi," she smiled at me. I stared at her, still not believing. I took a seat in the chair I was sitting at before and it stayed quiet.

"So, what's new?" my mom said, her voice raspy.

My eyes still burned and I didn't even try to wipe my eyes as I started to cry. I told my mom everything. And I mean _everything_! Including everything with TJ.

"Well," my mom whispered once I was done, "I think you should tell him you love him." she continued.

"W-what?" I asked. "I didn't say I loved him! I clearly used the word "like"! Not love! I didn't use love! Why are you using the word "love" mom?" I asked her, my face feeling hot.

She smiled, "because I can tell. I've seen how you look at him. I've known you've loved him since you were little. A mother knows these things."

I stared at my feet, "But, I don't think I should. What if he doesn't feel the same way?" I asked her.

"Why would he kiss you like that if he didn't love, let alone like you?" my mother asked.

"Are you answering my question with another question?" I asked her, raising an eyebrow.

"Are _you_ answering _my_ question with another question?" she asked with a slight giggle in her raspy voice.

I smiled, "Is it okay to leave?" I asked her. She nodded, "Just be sure to come back tomorrow and tell me what happens, pookie."

I nodded and ran out of the hospital room.

---

_TJ's POV. . . _

_At City Hall. . . _

My mom signed in under Spinelli's name and she was told to go to booth number 7 and start setting up her drawings/sculptures/painting/ whatever Spinelli was entering.

Ten minutes later my mom came out from the main hall where all the entries were and told us that the pictures Spinelli drew looked amazing and she was sure they would win.

When it was five o'clock, the doors opened and they let everyone who came to see the art work in, which was a lot.

I could see most of the kids from school there, and I even saw Mr. Kelso and his wife. I walked around the room, checking out all the art that was entered, everything that wasn't Spinelli's art. I still felt bad about what happened, and thought it would be weird to see which picture she entered. Who knows? Maybe she stayed up all night and drew a new picture of her beating the crap out of a kid who resembled me . . . a lot.

It was almost six thirty. I asked someone who looked like they were about to walk into a job interview (one of the judges, I was guessing) and asked when they would announce the winners. He said they would announce them at seven, until then, check out the art and enjoy the snacks.

I walked over to the snack table and grabbed myself a cup of punch.

"Hey dude." I heard someone say to me. I turned my head and Vince was smiling at me. He was holding two cups of punch. "For Gretch?" I asked, already knowing the answer.

He nodded, "Yeah. We all came here to support Spin. Where is she anyway? We really wanna tell her how much we think she's gonna win."

"The picture is that good?" I asked. He stared at me, "First, it's pictures. As in, more then one. Second, you haven't seen them yet?" he asked me.

I shook my head, feeling slightly embarrassed. "Yeah, well, I wanted to check out the competition before I saw Spinelli's stuff."

"Didn't she show you before you got here? I thought you of all people would be the first one to see it." Vince asked.

I shook my head, "Not after what I did. I don't think she'll ever forgive me or even look at me the same again."

"Why? What'd you do?" Vince asked me. I shook my head, "I'll tell you in time, LaSalle. It's a long story and I don't feel like telling this embarrassing and horrible story." I told him.

He nodded, knowing he wasn't going to win if he started to argue, and we walked over to the gang. Vince handed Gretchen her drink, and she thanked him.

"So, Teej, do you know where Spin is?" Gus asked. "Yeah, you never told me if you knew where she was or not." Vince said realization in his voice. I shrugged my shoulders, "She was in her room this morning, then I went up to Kelso's to get my pay check and when I came back she had already left. She might be here. But, I doubt. She told my mom she had more important things to do today. Although, I don't know what could be more important then this." I explained to them.

It got quiet for a moment, everyone thinking where she might have gone to, when Chipy walked up to me and started to drag me over to one of the booths.

"What is it Chipy?" I asked her. She just smiled and said "You'll see."

The booth was crowded with most of the people in the room. Chipy had to push her way through the crowd just to get to the front. I pushed too, and bumped into the table with the information about the art piece and the artist's name.

"Whose is this?" I asked Chipy. She pointed to the name tag on the table and I looked down. _A. F. Spinelli_ is said.

"This is Spinelli's . . ." I stopped myself and looked up at the drawings hanging on the fake wall behind the table.

It-it was me! No, no, it was us! Us as in, Spinelli and me. She drew in our faces in that picture she was drawing.

I knew it was us too, because (besides the fact that the guy had on a backwards red baseball cap and the girl had on Spinelli's old boots) in the close up views Spinelli drew of their faces, I could tell it was my face and Spinelli's. She was crying. Crying into my green jacket. And, I was happy. Happy to be there with her.

"_This picture is a girl hugging her lover after being away for ever." _Spinelli's words flashed into my head.

Now it all made sense. A girl being away for so long? Spinelli was gone for five years. Now, if you ask me, that's a long time. And, Spinelli will only ever let me hug her, besides her family I mean. But, lover? Did . . . did Spinelli love me? She had to since that's what she said and that's clearly us in the picture she drew.

"Do you see it?" Chipy asked me. I nodded, "Yeah, I see it." I say, and then I turn around and push myself through the crowd.

"TJ?" I hear Vince call after me, but I ignore him and walk out of the main room and outside, across the street and into the park.

I walk into the empty park. Has anyone ever come here, ever?! For some reason whenever I go to the town park it's always empty. Even the ice cream vendor isn't there! I walked over to one of the benches and sat down. I was facing town hall. Lights were in the ground, shinning up on town hall to make it look brighter and prettier.

After about twenty minutes of just sitting there and not thinking of anything, just the image of Spinelli's picture flashing on and off in my head like a flickering flashlight, I see someone run past me.

She stops and bends her knees a little, resting her hands on them and breathing heavily.

I didn't know who she was from behind, but I couldn't stop myself from calling out, "Spinelli?"

She turned her head and looked over at me, "Oh," she breathed, "It's you."

"You say that like it's a bad thing." I say, standing up and walking over to her. She stands up straight and looks at me, "No, no I didn't mean it like that! I, um, mean . . . I ran all the way here from the hospital and I really don't feel like explaining stuff." she said quickly.

"Spinelli," I start. Now was a better time then ever to tell her what I needed to say, "About last night," I said, pausing for a minute.

"No, TJ, wait, I need to," Spinelli started, but I shook my head, "wait! Before you tell me that you don't see me that way and you just want to be friends, I really need to tell you this!" I interrupted her.

"Spinelli, I don't know if you liked the kiss or not, but, since I was the one who kissed you, I liked it! There, I said it, I liked kissing you! I _like_ kissing you! I've wanted to kiss you ever since the experiment in fourth grade! What I'm getting at is, Spinelli I-" I paused. I was seriously going to say it,

"Spinelli, I love you!" I told her. My face felt hot and I was bracing myself for the rejection.

Spinelli looked taken aback, and her face was scarlet colored. "TJ . . ." Spinelli started. I nodded my head, "Yeah, I know. I shouldn't have said it. But, I needed to tell you, Spin. I couldn't keep it in. I had to tell you." I said quickly.

"So, you really wanted to kiss me?" Spinelli asked, taking a step forward. I nodded, "I just said that, didn't I?" I chuckled.

"But, it's just, I thought that maybe you did that out of the moment. Like, maybe you had like a flashback to when you went on a date with a girl and kissed her goodnight, or you were doing what you saw in a movie, or, um, well, I 'm just, Arrgh-oh, hell," she said, then stepped forward and kissed me.

I was surprised at first. I mean, she was kissing me, duh! But, I decided this couldn't be my fault since she was kissing me and I kissed her back.

The kissed depended, just like the night before, and I rested my hands on her back and she wrapped her hands around the back of my neck.

We separated after a minute, and I gazed into her eyes, "So, what does that kiss mean?" I asked her, in a slight chuckle.

She smiled and nodded her head, "That I like kissing you too. And, that I love you too, TJ. I always have."

I felt stunned. She loved me back?! Spinelli loved me back!

I was about to pull her in for another kiss when I looked at the clock above town hall and saw it was only four minutes until seven! They were gonna announce the winner and Spinelli wasn't even in there!

"Come on!" I tell her quickly. Grabbing her hand and pulling her out of the park, across the street, up the stairs to town hall and into the main room.

"TJ! Spinelli! There you guys are!" I heard someone call. Spinelli and I looked around and saw Vince and the gang, including my parents, Pete and Emily and two older men I didn't recognize until Spinelli let go of my hand and ran up to the boys and hugged them.

"Joey! Vito! You really came!" she said happily. The boy who had the lighter brown hair was Joey and the boy who had black raven hair like Spinelli was Vito.

"Hey, we said we would, didn't we?" Joey said, letting go of his little sister. "We were wondering where you were! Now, come on! They're about to announce the winners!" Vito said, quickly hugging Spinelli then pulling her through the crowd to the front of the stage, everyone following close behind.

---

_Spinelli's POV. . . _

A man in a suit stepped on stage and up to the microphone. He pulled out small note cards from the inside of his jacket and cleared his throat, "Thank you all for coming out tonight. We appreciate all who have entered and we hope you understand that even if you didn't win today, it doesn't mean that you are not a good artist. There is always next time, am I right?" he paused and let everyone in the room clap as a sign he was right.

"He's just saying that so the losers don't feel bad." Vito chuckled.

"Now, on to the winners. Third place goes to," he paused and looked down at one of the small note cards. "Nina Crew." he said, with a smile on his face. A red-headed girl in a pick frilly skirt and white shirt walked up on stage. She looked like she was my age, and she was smiling brightly.

She shook the mans hand and then proceeded off the stage to receive her winnings.

"Second place goes to," he paused again. I was thinking I would win second. I had crossed my fingers for second. _Say my name! Say my name! Say my name!_ I thought over and over again.

"Christopher Hepburn." the man said, and a guy who looked like he was around fifteen stepped up on stage, shook the mans hand and then walked off.

Crap. I knew my art could never win first place, and if I didn't get second, then I knew it was over.

I felt something grab my hand and I looked down then looked up and TJ was smiling at me, a reassuring smile. I smiled back, and then looked up at the stage. For some reason, TJ's smiled made me feel like I could win first place.

"And now, first place goes to," he paused, smiled, looked at the card, then frowned slightly, "Well, this is odd. We don't have a name here. Only initials, actually. Um, is there an A. F. Spinelli here?" he asked.

I felt like I was about to faint. "TJ, quick, what did you mom sign me in under?" I asked TJ, gripping his hand harder. "A. F. Spinelli!" TJ said happily.

"Don't kid with me, Teej!" I told him. "Spin you won! You won!" he said happily. I turned to look at everyone else and they smiled and cheered.

I quickly ran up to the stage and shook the mans hand. "How does it feel to be the winner of the contest and to have your art piece in an art show in New York, where it'll be sold?" he asked me.

I didn't really know what to say, but I shrugged and said, "It feels great, dude! I can't believe this is really happening to me! This is truly the best day of my life." I told him as her shoved the microphone in my face so everyone could hear me.

I walked off the stage and showed everyone the check I received and the ribbon everyone got.

"We're so happy for you, sis!" Joey said, hugging me.

I hugged him back, "Thanks! To tell you the truth, I didn't think I would win."

"No way! Spin, you're a great artist! Well, I bet you'll be a famous, worldwide artist by the time your twenty!" Annie said happily, hugging me. I hugged her back, "No more hugs, okay? I've had enough of the love for one day." I laughed after Annie let go of me.

"Well, how about we all go to Kelso's to celebrate?!" Mr. Detweiler said happily, and then added, "My treat!"

Once he said that, everyone agreed and started to head out the door.

I staggered behind, taking one last look at my drawings before they get sent to New York and to get sold to someone.

"Don't worry. My mom was taking pictures of it with her camera before, so you'll always have that picture with you." TJ said, walking up to me.

I smiled at him. He smiled back, and I laughed slightly.

I walked up to him, kissed his lips gently, and took his hand in mine as we walked out of Town Hall and joined our friends and family.

_The End . . ._

_---_

**Yay! it's done! No more!! Yay!!! lol, sorry but i've been so busy with this story and "Unlike Any Other" that i cant focus that much in skool, and the TAKS is coming up next week so i gotta study! well, back 2 the story, yeah, i know its a crapy ending but i thought it was sweet! ^-^. just so you know, i don't plan on making a story that happens after this one. i plan on finishing "Unlike Any Other" and then starting on "The Text Message" or "Wedding Trip". or maybe i'll decide to write something totally different. idk yet! ^-^ lol. well, thanks 4 reading and if you like the manga "Fruits Basket" and the charactor Momiji Sohma, that u gotta check out "Unlike Any Other" cuz that story is about him! ^-^ plz and thank u! remember,R&R!! bye bye!!**

**~~~Taylor**


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